Sporting goal machine Viktor Gyokeres has threatened to go on strike after seeing the club break a transfer promise made to him.
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Saker was under contract for next season but Renegades are set to search for a new coach after another disappointing BBL season
Alex Malcolm29-Apr-2024
David Saker is set to be moved on as Melbourne Renegades coach•Getty Images
Melbourne Renegades are set to part ways with BBL coach David Saker despite him having a year to run on his contract after another dismal season where they finished seventh.Saker, 57, was contracted to coach the Renegades for the 2024-25 season, which would have been his fourth in charge after taking over in 2021. But following a disappointing season where Renegades finished second last and won just two games, and also axed their captain Nic Maddinson, it is understood Renegades will seek a fresh start yet again with Saker’s tenure set to end early.Renegades have been the poorest performing club in the BBL since Andrew McDonald coached them to their inaugural title in 2018-19. McDonald left the role immediately after claiming that title when he joined the Australian team as an assistant before eventually becoming the national head coach in 2022.Related
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Michael Klinger took over as Renegades coach for the 2019-20 season but lasted just two summers as Renegades finished bottom of the BBL for two seasons running. Klinger departed to take up an administrative role with Cricket New South Wales.Saker was brought in for 2021-22 but Renegades finished last for a third straight year before bouncing back to finish third in 2022-23, winning seven games and hosting the Knockout where they were beaten by eventual finalists Brisbane Heat.But 2023-24 saw Renegades regress again. They were winless in their first five games and only managed to win two of their last five. They experienced a high turnover of players, with Maddinson axed as captain while Aaron Finch was in and out of the side before eventually calling time on his BBL career. Shaun Marsh also only managed five games due to injury issues before announcing his retirement.Renegades have made some list changes already in the off-season signing Brisbane Heat opener Josh Brown in the hopes he can form a dynamic opening duo with Jake Fraser-McGurk.Renegades are also seeking to appoint a new high performance manager who will oversee the cricket program. Melbourne Stars have advertised for a similar role. Cricket Victoria created the two roles to try and build a better link between the Victoria men’s program and the two Victoria BBL clubs, given they have been run as three separate entities without much connection in recent years.
KKR have brought in 16-year old Afghanistan offspinner Allah Ghazanfar
ESPNcricinfo staff28-Mar-2024
Keshav Maharaj picked up 15 wickets in the recent SA20•SA20
Afghanistan mystery spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman has been ruled out of Kolkata Knight Riders’ IPL 2024 campaign due to injury and will be replaced in the squad by his countryman, the 16-year-old Allah Ghazanfar.Rajasthan Royals signed South Africa’s left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj as a replacement for fast bowler Prasidh Krishna, who is currently recovering from surgery on his left proximal quadriceps tendon.Ghazanfar, also a mystery spinner, made his international debut earlier this month during the ODI series against Ireland, though he went wicketless in the two matches he played. He was Afghanistan’s second highest wicket-taker at the recently concluded Under-19 World Cup, taking eight wickets at an average of 16.75. Ghazanfar has played six List A matches and three T20s. He joins KKR for his base price of INR 20 lakhs.Maharaj, a South Africa veteran, has played 50 Tests, 44 ODIs and 27 T20Is, with a total of 237 wickets in international cricket. Additionally, he has played in T20 leagues around the world, including for Durban’s Super Giants in the SA20, and Fortune Barishal in the BPL. Maharaj, who took 15 wickets from 13 matches in this year’s SA20, had arrived in India earlier this month, training with the Lucknow Super Giants squad.KKR, who opened their campaign with a four-run win against Sunrisers Hyderabad, face Royal Challengers Bengaluru next on Friday. Royals also began their season on a victorious note against Super Giants.
Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim may be busy trying to save his side’s faltering season, but he will also have one eye on potential summer transfer activity at Old Trafford.
Summing up an inconsistent run of form under Amorim, Manchester United salvaged a late point at Goodison Park on Saturday lunchtime despite finding themselves victims of a two-goal deficit against David Moyes’ in-form outfit.
Beto and Abdoulaye Docoure appeared to have put the Red Devils on the verge of another demoralising defeat, but a late free-kick from Bruno Fernandes was followed up by an inch-perfect Manuel Ugarte strike to guarantee a share of the spoils.
Nevertheless, a common theme was present in the Merseyside sunshine. United’s disconnect within the backline was exposed ruthlessly, while a lack of firepower from the likes of Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee threatened to consign the visitors to another damaging loss.
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Man Utd’s lack of firepower in attack across all competitions |
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Rasmus Hojlund |
Appearances – 33 |
Goals – 7 |
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Joshua Zirkzee |
Appearances – 38 |
Goals – 5 |
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Chido Obi-Martin |
Appearances – 2 |
Goals – 0 |
On this occasion, two key vessels in the engine room stepped up to save the Red Devils from further frustration. Either way, they sit 15th in the Premier League standings and will look to the Europa League and FA Cup to provide some solace in a campaign that is petering out.
Come the summer, funds need to be raised for Amorim to breed fresh ideas. Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS helped to bring Patrick Dorgu and Ayden Heaven to Old Trafford in January, but they will want to maximise profit to enact a full rebuild ahead of 2025/26.
Marcus Rashford became Manchester United’s main January window casualty after a fallout with Amorim led the England international to join Aston Villa on loan for the remainder of the campaign. He has since kicked on at Villa Park, lodging two assists in the Villans’ dramatic 2-1 victory over Chelsea on Saturday evening.
Looking ahead to the summer, reports in Spain indicate Bayern Munich want to sign Rashford for £40 million and their sporting director Christoph Freund is said to be heavily involved in negotiations to land the Three Lions attacker, with the German giants going ‘all in’ for the player still on the books of Man Utd.
Labelled ‘fantastic’ by Jamie Redknapp after his exploits against Chelsea, the £300,000-a-week man is at a career crossroads given his age and has raised his market value owing to a series of impressive cameos since pitching up in the West Midlands.
Thriving off the left flank, Rashford created three chances at home to Enzo Maresca’s stuttering Blues and recorded a pass completion rate of 94% alongside five touches in the opposition penalty area.
Clearly enjoying his football in the midst of a difficult first half of the campaign at his boyhood club, his recent form may pave the way for Manchester United to cash in on his services for a premium should appropriate interest arise for the talented forward.
Attempting to strike up a bidding war would be the best course of action for the Red Devils, with long-overdue investment in the first team needed to propel the club back to a position where they can challenge for trophies on a regular basis.
Australia have a reshuffled top order but remain overwhelming favourites
Andrew McGlashan16-Jan-20242:40
‘Huge task awaits inexperienced West Indies against Australia in Adelaide’
On paper this looks like the ultimate mismatch. A powerful and successful Australia side, against a West Indies team that will feature at least three debutants and only five players with previous experience in the country. It will probably play out that way, too, but that does not mean there won’t be intrigue along the way.For Australia, it’s the start of a new era following David Warner’s retirement. The solution to filling his spot took a somewhat unexpected twist when it was Steven Smith who was handed the role, having been the last person considered. He has never opened in first-class cricket, and the decision has prompted significant debate, but there would be little surprise if he makes a success of it.Related
Meet West Indies' seven uncapped players in Australia
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Odds stacked against brave and talented West Indians in Australia
A byproduct is that Cameron Green is able to return to the fold at No. 4, but otherwise it’s a case of same again for the home side. The fast bowlers are all good to keep going, helped by the fact that the Pakistan Tests finished in four days although Australia were pushed harder than some expected.So to West Indies. For a myriad of reasons this is a vastly different squad to the one that toured Australia a little more than a year ago – one of the game’s many scheduling quirks meaning they are back for consecutive summers. They put up some stubborn resistance with the bat in Perth on the last trip, led by captain Kraigg Brathwaite and Tagenarine Chanderpaul, but were overwhelmed in Adelaide and across the two games took just 19 of a possible 40 wickets.Kemar Roach, who famously roughed up Ricky Ponting in 2009, will need to make much more of an impact than an average of 90.62 shows he has managed in Australia before, with support from new vice-captain Alzarri Joseph. They do at least have an Australian top order to target that will be under a level of scrutiny given the changes.Most interest, and excitement, among the new names in the West Indies squad is around quick bowler Shamar Joseph, from the village of Baracara in Guyana which is only accessible by boat, who impressed on the A tour of South Africa last year and produced an encouraging performance in the warm-up match against the Cricket Australia XI. For him, and plenty of others, this tour is a chance to make a name for themselves.
(last five matches, most recent first)
Australia WWWLD
West Indies DLLLWTagenarine Chanderpaul made his debut on the previous tour of Australia•Getty Images
Cameron Green has long been anointed Australia’s next superstar, and he showed glimpses in his first stint of Test cricket to suggest that tag was justified. But through a combination of factors, including adjusting to quickly changing between formats, a minor injury that ruled him out of the Headingley Test in the Ashes, and Mitchell Marsh’s subsequent outstanding form, he now needs to re-establish himself. No. 4 is viewed as his long-term home, although it was probably thought it would come through Smith’s retirement, not a batting order move. It will also be interesting how much Pat Cummins uses him with the ball.Tagenarine Chanderpaul made a promising start to his Test career on last season’s tour of Australia with a half-century on debut followed by a pair of 40s. The match after that he scored a double-century against Zimbabwe but things have been a bit tougher since then against South Africa and India. Alongside his captain, he will be key to blunting Australia’s strong attack and giving the inexperienced middle order a chance to bed in.
Australia’s XI was locked in last week with the squad announcement when the new spots for Smith and Green were confirmed. Matt Renshaw and Scott Boland are the reserve players.Australia 1 Usman Khawaja, 2 Steven Smith, 3 Marnus Labuschagne, 4 Cameron Green, 5 Travis Head, 6 Mitchell Marsh 7 Alex Carey (wk), 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Pat Cummins (capt), 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Josh HazlewoodKraigg Brathwaite confirmed that Kavem Hodge and Justin Greaves will debut in the middle order along with Shamar Joseph in the pace attack.West Indies 1 Kraigg Brathwaite, 2 Tagenarine Chanderpaul, 3 Kirk McKenzie, 4 Alick Athanaze, 5 Kavem Hodge, 6 Justin Greaves, 7 Joshua Da Silva (wk), 8 Alzarri Joseph, 9 Kemar Roach, 10 Gudakesh Motie, 11 Shamar Joseph
For the first time since 2018 it will be a day game in Adelaide. That has not changed things hugely for curator Damian Hough who is renowned for making excellent Test surfaces. He expects this one to have good pace. “We’ve had a really good lead-in with the weather being able to get some good moisture throughout the pitch,” he said. The forecast is settled throughout.
“It’s always good here. I think it’s consistently a great balance, if you put in the right areas you feel like there’s enough there for the whole five days. But there’s also runs to be scored. It’s pretty bouncy and true so looks the same.”
da wazamba： With their domestic campaign all but over and their Europa League hopes hanging by a thread, it would be fair to say that there have been plenty of underachievers in the Tottenham Hotspur squad this year.
da esport bet： In fact, while their defence has been a real issue, mainly through injury, there is an argument to be made that, aside from Dominic Solanke, the attack has been just as underwhelming.
For example, Brennan Johnson can be exceptionally effective one week and then anonymous for the next three, and while Son Heung-min still has a goal or assist in him, he seriously struggles to make any sort of impact from out wide anymore.
However, while both have been subpar this season, neither has been as poor as Timo Werner, so it’s good news that the club may already have his ideal replacement in a player thriving out on loan this term.
Why Werner has to go in the summer
While he certainly wasn’t great by any stretch of the imagination, it wouldn’t be outlandish to suggest that in his limited game time at the backend of last season, Werner was a fine – just fine – temporary addition to Spurs’ attack.
However, while his tally of five goal involvements in 14 games was an okay return for a loanee, it didn’t feel like enough to justify re-signing him and his £165k-per-week wages for another season, as the club did in May.
Unfortunately, instead of proving his doubters wrong, the former Chelsea flop has proven them very right this season and likely played himself out of a move to another top side in Europe.
For example, the 29-year-old forward has only been able to muster up an undeniably paltry haul of one goal and three assists in 27 appearances for the North Londoners.
That means the RB Leipzig loanee has averaged a goal involvement every 6.75 games, and when compared to his teammates, he’s the joint-seventh most productive player in the whole squad, alongside Richarlison and Djed Spence.
Spurs’ most productive players
Player
Appearances
Goals + Assists
Son
38
21
Kulusevski
42
20
Johnson
37
17
Maddison
36
17
Solanke
31
17
Porro
40
9
Sarr
41
8
Bergvall
36
5
Richarlison
14
4
Spence
22
4
Werner
27
4
All Stats via Transfermarkt
In all, there is no strong argument for re-signing Werner in the summer, especially as the club already have a winger out on loan outperforming the German with ease.
The Spurs ace who should replace Werner
The good news for Spurs this year is that several players are excelling on loan, from Jamie Donley at Leyton Orient to the incredibly exciting Luka Vušković at Belgian outfit K.V.C. Westerlo.
However, when it comes to a winger who could realistically come into the squad next season and replace Werner, it has to be Manor Solomon.
The dynamic attacker joined Leeds United on a season-long deal in the summer and, after a slowish start to the campaign, is now one of their most important forwards.
Solomon vs Werner in 24/25
Player
Solomon
Werner
Appearances
31
27
Minutes
1860′
945′
Goals
7
1
Assists
8
3
Goal Involvements per Match
0.48
0.14
Minutes per Goal Involvement
124′
236.25′
All Stats via Transfermarkt
For example, in just 31 appearances for the Peacocks, totalling 1860 minutes, the incredible “pocket rocket,” as dubbed by Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp, has racked up a haul of seven goals and eight assists.
That means the former Shakhtar Donetsk star is averaging a goal involvement every 2.06 games, or every 124 minutes.
On top of being the far more effective winger, the 25-year-old also represents a better financial option, as he’s only earning £60k-per-week, which is over £100k less than the German.
Ultimately, Solomon is unlikely to develop into Spurs’ new first-choice left-winger next season, but he’s shown this year that he’d be more than capable of being one of the first names on the bench, unlike Werner.
Spurs struck gold on unreal "monster" who's worth millions more than Guehi
The incredible talent is one of Spurs’ most important players.
1 ByJack Salveson Holmes Mar 8, 2025
Meg Lanning skipped the game, and with only two games left for Stars, her immediate future in the sport is uncertain
AAP and ESPNcricinfo staff19-Nov-2023
Annabel Sutherland smashed 37 in 21 balls, before picking up two wickets•Getty Images
Former Australia captain Meg Lanning has taken an indefinite break from the WBBL, less than two weeks after her retirement from international cricket.Lanning sat out Melbourne Stars’ 15-run win over Brisbane Heat at the Junction Oval in Melbourne on Sunday due to personal reasons. With only two games left and Stars to miss making the finals, Lanning’s immediate future in the sport is uncertain.”She’s taking a few days out for some personal reasons,” Stars coach Jonathan Batty told the Seven Network. “We’re reassured she’s all OK, which is the most important thing, but we’re giving her that time and space and respecting her privacy in what she needs to do.”We’re taking it on a game-by-game basis at the moment and we’ll give her all the time she needs to make that decision but she’s definitely out for the next couple of games.”Lanning has taken numerous breaks from cricket during the last two years, and earlier this month announced she was ending her storied career for Australia, saying she had lost the hunger to perform at international level.Sophie Day, the Player of the Match, was understandably in demand afterwards•Getty Images
Young allrounder Annabel Sutherland captained Stars in Lanning’s absence as Heat dropped a second straight match.Opener Maia Bouchier top-scored with 41 in Stars’ 156 for 5, while Amelia Kerr and Nicola Hancock picked up two wickets each for Heat.In the chase, opener Georgia Redmayne, filling in as captain for Jess Jonassen, who was rested due to hamstring soreness, started brightly but left-arm spinner Sophie Day and Sutherland tightened the screws on Heat.Day’s performance took her back to the top of the wicket-taking charts in what has been a breakout season for her.While Kerr and Mignon du Preez were together, Heat had a chance of challenging the target, but they fell in consecutive deliveries – Kerr excellently caught by wicketkeeper Sophie Reid and then du Preez bowled by Day, who was named Player of the Match for her 3 for 16.The defeat is a blow to Heat’s hopes of hosting the final as the table-topping team in the regular season.
Celtic were dealt a fairly significant blow in the recent January transfer window when star striker Kyogo Furuhashi decided to move on from Parkhead to sign for Ligue 1 side Rennes.
The French outfit reportedly agreed a fee of £10m to sign the Japan international, and that put an end to his three-and-a-half-year stay in Glasgow, having joined from Vissel Kobe in the summer of 2021.
Kyogo racked up an impressive tally of 85 goals in 165 competitive matches for the Scottish giants during his time at Paradise, including 34 goals in the 2022/23 campaign.
The 30-year-old marksman had scored 12 goals and provided four assists in all competitions in the current term for Celtic, which shows that he was still in top form by the end of his career at the club.
Instead of signing a replacement to compete for a place in the team at the top end of the pitch, Brendan Rodgers has trusted Daizen Maeda and Adam Idah to handle the responsibility of being the sole number nine in his system.
It has not been an easy season, however, for the Ireland international since he was brought back to the club on a permanent deal from Norwich City last summer.
Adam Idah's form for Celtic this season
The Hoops reportedly splashed out an initial fee of £8.5m to sign the 6 foot 3 marksman from the Canaries on a permanent basis, after his return of nine goals and two assists in 19 matches on loan in the second half of the 2023/24 campaign.
Idah has the chance to settle down and forge a long-term career for himself at Parkhead, but he has not had the easiest of starts to his journey to becoming the first-choice striker for the club.
The 24-year-old number nine has only scored 13 goals in 41 matches in all competitions, which is a solid but unspectacular return, and he has failed to nail down a place as a regular starter.
Idah has not been reliable enough in the Scottish Premiership for Rodgers to count on him to start week-in-week-out to lead the line for the Scottish giants.
Appearances
26
Starts
15
Goals
8
Big chances missed
13
Big chances created
5
Assists
0
As you can see in the table above, the Irish attacker has been wasteful in front of goals with the high-quality chances that have come his way, missing 13 ‘big chances’ in 15 starts.
There have been plenty of promising moments for the £8.5m-rated star, however, including his quickfire brace against Aston Villa in the Champions League.
It is down to Idah to finally take the next step in his career and become a consistent goalscorer at first-team level, as it is something that he has struggled with.
Since making his debut for Norwich in 2019, the Ireland international has scored 39 goals in 176 senior games for the Canaries and Celtic combined.
In that same time, Idah has been vastly outscored by a former Hoops striker who failed to make the grade at Parkhead – Finland international Teemu Pukki.
Teemu Pukki's struggles with Celtic
Back in the summer of 2013, Celtic reportedly splashed out a fee of £3m to sign the Finnish marksman from German side FC Schalke, as they looked to replace Gary Hooper, who had signed for – funnily enough – Norwich that summer.
Hooper had just come off the back of a return of 31 goals and ten assists in 51 appearances in all competitions during the 2012/13 campaign, which shows that Pukki had big boots to fill.
Unfortunately, the £3m-rated attacker, aged 23 at the time, failed to establish himself as a regular goalscorer for the Premiership giants, with just seven goals in 26 league matches for the Bhoys.
Pukki did manage two goals and one assist in four Champions League qualifiers at the start of the following season, but that did not stop the Hoops from sending him out on loan to Brondby, a deal that was made permanent at the end of the 2014/15 campaign.
After a return of 72 goals in 164 appearances for the Danish side, the Finland international signed for Norwich on a free transfer in the summer of 2018, and the rest – they say – is history.
Why Celtic must regret selling Teemu Pukki
Pukki hit the ground running with a sensational haul of 29 goals and 10 assists in 43 matches in the Championship in his debut season with the Canaries to lead them to promotion to the Premier League.
Where Are They Now
Idah was promoted to the first-team in the 2019/20 campaign and had to watch on from the bench as the Finnish star proved himself to be a fine option in the top-flight of English football, scoring 11 times in 36 matches despite their relegation.
22/23 Championship
41
10
10
21/22 Premier League
37
11
10
20/21 Championship
41
26
22
19/20 Premier League
36
11
11
18/19 Championship
43
29
19
As you can see in the table above, Pukki provided a consistent presence in the final third for Norwich throughout his time at Carrow Road, as he never missed more ‘big chances’ than he managed goals scored in a single league campaign – in the Championship or the Premier League.
The impressive marksman scored 88 goals in 210 matches for the Yellows in all competitions, and 58 of those goals came from the 2019/20 campaign onwards – after Idah’s senior bow.
This means that Pukki has outscored the Irishman since 2019 without even taking his goals for Minnesota United FC or HJK Helsinki in recent years into account.
For what it is worth, the 34-year-old ace, who was once described as “unplayable” by Daniel Farke, scored 14 goals in 43 games for the MLS side and has scored twice in three matches for Helsinki – his current club – so far.
These statistics suggest that Celtic made a mistake when they decided to loan him out, and subsequently cash in on him, after just one full season at Parkhead.
The Hoops did not give him the time he needed to fulfill his potential and his form for Norwich, at Premier League and Championship level, which is why they must regret not being more patient with him as they missed out on a terrific, clinical, centre-forward.
He's better than Tierney: Celtic star sold by Lennon is now worth 259% more
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ByDan Emery Mar 5, 2025
With this in mind, Rodgers and Celtic must remain patient with Pukki’s former protégé, Idah, as he is still young and may need a bit of time to find his feet and emerge as a consistent performer in front of goal.
There was no place for Jaker Ali who was in the squad for the Ireland series in March
Mohammad Isam18-Jun-2023Bangladesh have brought back Afif Hossain and Ebadot Hossain into their T20I squad for the two-match series against Afghanistan. There was no place for wicketkeeper-batter Jaker Ali who was in the squad for the Ireland series in March.Afif, who was also named in the ODI squad for the series against Afghanistan, last played T20Is against England in March. In 62 T20Is, he has scored 1020 runs at a strike rate of 120.28.Related
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Ebadot, meanwhile, wasn’t in the T20I side against England or Ireland, and he last played in the T20 World Cup in November last year. Having made his debut in the format during the Asia Cup in 2022, he has seven wickets in four T20Is. He took 4-47 in the one-off Test against Afghanistan earlier this week.Bangladesh’s next scheduled T20Is are against New Zealand in December this year following this series. The T20Is against Afghanistan will be played in Sylhet on July 14 and 16 following the three ODIs. The only other time Bangladesh played T20Is at home in July was against South Africa in 2015.Bangladesh T20I squad: Shakib Al Hasan (capt), Litton Das, Rony Talukdar, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid Hridoy, Shamim Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Nasum Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Hasan Mahmud, Taskin Ahmed, Ebadot Hossain, Shoriful Islam, Rishad Hossain, Afif Hossain
Halfway into IPL 2023, ESPNcricinfo Identifies the best performers after factoring in the context and match situation
S Rajesh26-Apr-2023T20 was originally meant to be a young man’s game, but one would scoff at that notion seeing the top performers of IPL 2023. The leading run-scorer is Faf du Plessis, who’ll turn 39 in July; the third-highest score this season is the unbeaten 99 from Shikhar Dhawan, who is 37; with a 30-ball cut-off, the batter with the highest strike rate (199.04) is Ajinkya Rahane, who’ll turn 35 in June; the leading wicket-taker for Mumbai Indians is 34-year-old Piyush Chawla.All of these players are among the top seven in terms of the top impact players at the halfway stage this season, according to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats, a performance rating system which takes into account the context and match situation for each batting and bowling display.ESPNcricinfo LtdWith 405 runs at a strike rate of 165.3, there is no doubt that du Plessis has been the stand-out batter of the tournament. He is also at the top of the MVP list, collecting 71.2 impact points per match. Each of his five 50-plus scores got more than 75 impact points, which is an illustration not just of consistent run-scoring, but also of maintaining a terrific strike rate.Dhawan has unfortunately missed three games due to injury, but his unbeaten 99 off 66 is arguably the top batting performance of the tournament, especially since it came out of a total of 143, and the other batters collectively scored 38 off 54. That is reflected in his impact score of 161.05 for that innings, the highest impact points for any player in a match this season. It’s marginally higher than Venkatesh Iyer’s 51-ball 104 in a relatively high-scoring game against Mumbai Indians.
If du Plessis is the stand-out batter so far, then his team-mate Mohammed Siraj has that honour among bowlers, according to Smart Stats. He is joint second on the highest wicket-takers’ list with 13, one behind Rashid Khan’s 14, but the algorithm reckons those 13 scalps are worth 18.3 Smart Wickets, compared to Rashid’s 16.8. That’s because of the number of top-order wickets Siraj has taken – he has seven in the Powerplays, which is joint highest with Trent Boult. Those breakthroughs have often set the tone for the innings to give Royal Challengers Bangalore early ascendancy.The two huge surprises in that list, though, are clearly Rahane and Chawla. Of the five innings Rahane has played so far, four have been 30-plus runs at 160-plus strike rates; two of those have been 60-plus runs at 200-plus strike rates. Rahane’s current impact per innings of 55.99 is easily the best of his IPL career. In fact, only once before has his impact exceeded 35 – in 2015, when he scored 540 runs at a strike rate of 130.8. Most of his IPL career, his impact per innings has hovered in the 20s, which is about half of what he is going at this season.ESPNcricinfo LtdSimilarly, Chawla’s resurgence has been remarkable. In the last three IPL seasons that he played (2019 to 2021), he took 17 wickets in 21 games at an average of 36.9 and an economy rate of 9.04. This season, his 11 wickets have come at 17.45, and an economy rate of 7.11.Teams and their Impact PointsChennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans are topping the points table halfway into the season, but how do the teams stack up in terms of Impact Points in the tournament so far? The table below lists the batting and bowling Impact Points for each team, and apart from Royal Challengers sneaking into the top position, it quite closely resembles the points table. Super Kings and Titans are second and third. The other teams on eight are all bunched together, as are the bottom-runners on four.
Royal Challengers topping the list is largely because they have taken the most wickets among all teams – 54, one more than Titans and three more than Super Kings – and they also have the second-best run rate (9.41) after Super Kings (9.68). They have also been involved in a few close finishes: those add to the impact points because of the high pressure on both batters and bowlers. Of the 2471 points they have earned, 39% has been contributed by two players – du Plessis and Siraj.What also stands out is the poor batting numbers for Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad. They are languishing at the bottom in terms of run rates too – 7.83 for Sunrisers and 7.49 for Capitals – while the 60 wickets lost by Capitals are the most by any team. Sunrisers are also at the bottom of the bowling impact points, which illustrates what a fall it has been for a team which used to pride itself on its bowling – apart from Mayank Markande and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, none of the others have had an impressive tournament so far.