All posts by h716a5.icu

The Saurashtra openers’ put together a double-century stand against Mumbai as the visitor’s bowlers struggled to make inroads on a flat pitch

Nagraj Gollapudi in Rajkot06-Dec-2011
ScorecardJust before the tea interval, Saurashtra coach Debu Mitra asked Siddharth Trivedi, one of the new-ball bowlers, which was the flatter of the two pitches between Cuttack and Rajkot. A month ago, in their season opener, played at the Barabati stadium, Saurashtra’s bowlers had toiled for 199 overs, yet failed to bowl out Orissa in a match where 1039 runs were scored.Today, at the Khandheri Cricket stadium, Mumbai’s bowling, lead by Zaheer Khan, India’s leading fast bowler, managed to take just two wickets as Saurashtra finished an energy-sapping first day on 244 runs on a dry pitch.Playing his second Ranji match in two weeks, Zaheer might have liked a more generous pitch and conditions. Fortunately for India, Zaheer stood strong throughout the day in which he bowled 13 overs, spread over spells in each of the three sessions, before signing off with the ball of the day, which earned him his solitary wicket.Zaheer was the first player to enter the field after the bell rang five minutes before start of play, marking his run-up quickly. His third delivery, pitched outside the line off stump, hit Chirag Pathak on his back pad and drew a loud appeal from the wicketkeeper and slips. Zaheer did not bother appealing and turned back to deliver the next ball. His sole focus, it appeared, was to find his rhythm.The Saurashtra left-right opening pair of Pathak and Bhushan Chauhan surprisingly played with undue restraint on a harmless pitch. Pathak was Zaheer’s initial target in the morning. Zaheer aimed at coercing him into a mistake, peppering the diminutive opener with short-pitched deliveries with two short legs in place. In the past, Pathak has shown a penchant to play belligerent strokes, but today he showed restraint.Zaheer’s first spell of six overs went for 26 runs and there was nothing much in it to scare the openers. A bowler of Zaheer’s stature can often impose himself on a domestic game just by his presence, as Wasim Jaffer, the Mumbai captain, had observed on the eve of the match. Instead Pathak and Chauhan dictated terms. On a pitch lacking in pace, the pair of Dhawal Kulkarni and Aavishkar Salvi, Mumbai’s other seamers, failed to make an impact as well.Though Ramesh Powar tried hard to draw the batsman out with his slow, loopy off breaks, Pathak and Chauhan played with dead bats most times. Iqbal Abdulla’s left-arm spin was hardly utilised by Jaffer in the first two sessions; instead he turned to the part-time spin of Suryakumar Yadav. The plan came close to success but Jaffer in the slips spilled a hard cut shot, played late by Pathak, who was six runs short of his fourth first-class century.After lunch Zaheer attacked with two short legs, a leg gully, a slip, a short point, short cover and silly mid-off. Zaheer bowled from round the stumps, and wide of the crease to unsettle the batsmen, but the strategy failed to dislodge either batsman.With the lush outfield, Zaheer’s efforts to try and get some reverse swing did not materialise as the Saurashtra openers registered a 200-run partnership for the second time against Mumbai. The same pair had racked up 275 runs at the Madhavrao Scindia Cricket ground in the 2008-09 season, the highest opening partnership by Saurashtra against Mumbai.There was to be no new record though, as Pathak attempted an inside-out lofted shot against Powar, but hit it straight to Jaffer at cover, ending the opening pair’s 218-run stand. Though Sagar Jogiyani started with two punched back-foot fours against Kulkarni, he had no answer to a straighter delivery from Zaheer, which pitched on a good length and moved quickly to clean up his off stump. There was no trademark Zaheer celebration of spread-eagling his arms this time. Instead Zaheer rubbed the sweat off his forehead and quietly accepted the pats from his teammates. He bowled just one over after that wicket and finished the day with figures of 13-0-55-1.Saurashtra might think they earned a small victory by keeping Zaheer quiet. But on a pitch that could not be more batsmen-friendly, the hosts scored under three runs an over. Tomorrow if they fail to score at a fair clip their slow rate of scoring might come to hurt them.

England Lions seamer James Harris took three wickets as Glamorgan had thebetter of a rain-affected second day of their County Championship DivisionTwo match against Leicestershire at Colwyn Bay

18-Aug-2011
Scorecard
England Lions seamer James Harris took three wickets as Glamorgan had thebetter of a rain-affected second day of their County Championship DivisionTwo match against Leicestershire at Colwyn Bay.After Glamorgan made 392 all out in their first innings Leicestershire werereduced to 80 for 4 before James Taylor and Wayne White put on an unbrokenhalf-century partnership for the fourth wicket.At tea, after which no play was possible due to rain, Leicestershire hadreached 140 for 4. Play was called off for the day at 5pm with 32 oversremaining. Glamorgan, who resumed their first innings on 328 for eight, enjoyed aprofitable opening session as they scored a further 64 runs in 13.1 overs asLeicestershire struggled to take the final two wickets.And after home side were eventually bowled out, 21-year-old Harris reducedLeicestershire to 33 for 2 in the 55 minutes they had to bat before lunch. In the fifth over Will Jefferson went leg before to Harris, who then had Greg Smith caught behind.After lunch Harris bowled a testing second spell which was rewarded when hebowled Matthew Boyce through the gate. It was an impressive performance from theLions bowler, who produced figures of three for 20 off his 14 overs.After Harris was rested, Dean Cosker then struck with his fifth ball to trapJosh Cobb leg before to leave Leicestershire 80 for 4. After that the visitors fought back with Lions captain Taylor, who played watchfully for his 34, and the more prolific White, who struck three sixes in his 59-ball 44 not out, looking solid against the spinners before the rain cameand prevented the players returning to the field after tea.The day began with the Glamorgan spinners, Robert Croft (31) and Cosker (39),earning their side a fourth batting point. A 57-run partnership for the ninthwicket was ended when Wayne White had Croft caught behind.But the runs kept coming with Will Owen planting off spinner Jigar Naik overlong-on for six in a breezy 26 from 22 balls before Cosker was bowled by ClaudeHenderson’s first ball of the day.

Wasim Akram, the former Pakistan captain, has offered his services tp the PCB as a part-time bowling coach

Umar Farooq17-Oct-2011Wasim Akram, the former Pakistan captain, has offered his services to the PCB as a part-time bowling coach. Akram said he is ‘ready to work for Pakistan’, but would not be able to do it full-time because of family commitments.”Coaching is a very demanding job,” Akram told reporters at Lahore airport. “It requires a 24/7 [twenty four hours, seven days a week commitment] that I cannot afford while my personal life is a little unsettled. I have two kids to look after. But if they want my services, I am ready to work, but only in my free time.”In the past Akram has turned down the PCB’s offers to coach, citing his responsibilities as a commentator. While he did state that he still doesn’t have much free time, he said that whenever he is in Pakistan, he could juggle his routine to have time to coach fast bowlers.”I have emphasised before that while I am free in Pakistan, give me about 10 to 15 young fast bowlers to coach for a month and I am ready to work. We have outstanding facilities at the National Cricket Academy. Send them to Karachi or I can come to Lahore as well.”When asked about the upcoming series between Pakistan and Sri Lanka in the UAE, Akram said Sri Lanka are a good side but not good enough to beat Pakistan. He pointed out that the bowling attack has struggled without Muttiah Muralitharan, who was responsible for 40 per cent of the team’s wickets during his career.”Sri Lanka is a good team but without Murali [Muralitharan] and [Lasith] Malinga they can’t bowl out Pakistan twice in Test cricket,” Akram said. “I don’t see Pakistan losing unless they play very bad cricket.”Pakistan has experience as Younis [Khan], Misbah [ul Haq] are there in the line-up and another veteran (Shoaib) Malik is back in the side. So with all this, we can understand that the team isn’t lacking any talent. They just need support and need to play good cricket.”Pakistan will play three Tests, five ODIs and a Twenty20 International in the three Emirates of Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, as Pakistan are currently unable to host international cricket amid security concerns since the attack on the Sri Lanka team in 2009. Given the situation, Akram said the PCB should create an alternative home country for the team.”The idea is to play as much cricket as they can,” Akram said. “If teams aren’t heading to Pakistan, come up with an alternative hub and a system for Pakistan’s home series and give its team more cricket – that will help them to flourish.”

India made good use of their first opportunity to bowl first in the series, removing three top-order wickets before steady rain blighted a promising start under clear skies and in bright sunshine

The Bulletin by Siddhartha Talya06-Jul-2011India
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Adrian Barath dragged an attempted pull onto his stumps•Associated PressSteady rain blighted a promising start under clear skies and bright sunshine in the first ever Test in Dominica – the 106th Test venue – to reduce the opening day to just 31.1 overs. In that time, India made good use of their only opportunity to bowl first this series, removing three top-order batsmen on a good batting track. India’s decision to bowl was prompted by the moisture in the pitch, but it didn’t play a significant role; instead the seamers were persistent against the inexperienced batting that included two debutants. Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Darren Bravo then added 40 runs in a rebuilding effort before the rain swooped in.This is a landmark Test in several ways other than the ground’s debut: Chanderpaul became the most-capped West Indies Test cricketer, overtaking Courtney Walsh, and he fittingly handed out the maroon caps to his two debutant team-mates, Kieran Powell and Kirk Edwards.There was wobbly swing for Praveen Kumar early on and, barring a couple of misdirected balls down the leg side, he set about working at the openers outside off stump. Powell left the ball well, and solidly kept out the odd ones that nipped back in. A tall opener from Leeward Islands with a sound defence, Powell went along patiently but couldn’t resist stabbing at Praveen, who teased him into edging an inducker to second slip.Barath had negotiated the deliveries bowled in the channel but offered hope to the bowlers with his constant shuffles towards off stump. Ishant had bowled a couple of shortish deliveries at Barath and, following a change of ends in the 13th over continued hitting that length. Barath hooked a bouncer, played at the next one down the leg side and saw it clip his thigh pad, and then opted to attack again when Ishant delivered a third consecutive short ball. He walked across to swivel and pull one behind square, only to drag it off his glove and on to the stumps.Ishant hit the deck and the bat hard, aiming at Bravo’s ribs and then inducing him to cut uppishly past an absent gully. But he had some support from the other end in dismissing Kirk Edwards. Munaf Patel, playing his first Test since April 2009, had put Edwards in some discomfort with a series of short balls. When Edwards faced up to Ishant in the 17th over, he attempted to hook a bouncer that didn’t quite deserve it and was adjudged caught-behind, though replays indicated the ball had deflected off the helmet. Edwards indicated to the umpire he’d been struck on the helmet, potentially warranting some attention from the match referee, before leaving the field.That brought in Chanderpaul to big cheers from the small crowd and he settled in, for the umpteenth time, to the assignment of stabilising a wobbling innings in his 133rd Test.India – who bowled at a much improved over-rate, with their captain facing a one-Test ban if it slipped again – turned to spin before lunch and Harbhajan Singh, just two wickets away from 400 in Tests, extracted decent bounce in his very first over. But barring a top-edged sweep that fell safe, Chanderpaul, along with Bravo, defended well and rotated the strike. The pair picked a boundary each with delicious drives off Praveen after lunch and looked to be setting a platform for recovery when the skies opened up as they had long threatened.

The Surrey fast bowler Jade Dernbach has been named in England’s squad for Friday’s second Test against Sri Lanka at Lord’s, after James Anderson was ruled out due to a side strain suffered while bowling on the second day of the series opener in Cardiff.

Andrew Miller in Cardiff30-May-2011The Surrey fast bowler Jade Dernbach has been named in England’s squad for Friday’s second Test against Sri Lanka at Lord’s, after James Anderson was ruled out due to a side strain suffered while bowling on the second day of the series opener in Cardiff.Dernbach, who replaces Anderson as the only addition to an otherwise unchanged squad of 12, remains uncapped at international level despite being called up to England’s ODI squad for the World Cup quarter-final against Sri Lanka in March. Dernbach wasn’t selected to play in that match but recently collected nine wickets for the England Lions in the tour match against Sri Lanka.Aside from a brief appearance as nightwatchman, Anderson did not feature in the latter stages of the first Test. However, his absence was not felt by his team-mates as they surged to an incredible innings-and-14-run victory after bowling Sri Lanka out for 82 in just 24.4 overs on the final afternoon of the match.Nevertheless, England will miss his new-ball abilities at Lord’s, a venue where he has claimed 36 wickets in nine appearances, including two of his ten five-wicket hauls. He will continue to receive treatment and rehabilitation before a decision is made on his participation in the third and final Test at the Rose Bowl, starting June 16.”It’s a very slight side strain, but you have to take these things on a case-by-case basis,” said England’s captain, Andrew Strauss. “Hopefully he’ll be around for the third Test, but we can’t guarantee it.”In Anderson’s absence, the likeliest replacement in the starting XI is Steven Finn, who was named in their 12-man squad for Cardiff but was omitted on the morning of the match. As a Middlesex man, he is familiar with the Lord’s wicket, and should he be chosen alongside Stuart Broad and Chris Tremlett, England’s three-man pace attack would rank among the tallest of all time.However, Strauss indicated that the variety provided by a shorter pace bowler was something that the selectors were considering. “We certainly want the option of a skiddier bowler, but whether he makes the final XI is another matter,” he said.National Selector, Geoff Miller, said: “It’s obviously disappointing to lose Jimmy Anderson for the next Test as he is world-class and the leader of our attack but we’re fortunate to have a healthy stock of pace bowlers at present. We’re hopeful Jimmy will be available for the third Test but in the meantime we’re excited by Jade Dernbach’s inclusion.”Jade is a talented young bowler and after excelling with the England Performance Programme over the winter he enjoyed considerable success with the ball against Sri Lanka while playing for the England Lions prior to the first Test.”ECB Chief medical officer, Dr Nick Peirce, said: “The nature of Jimmy’s injury is a grade one tear which is a low-end injury but given it’s a side strain we need to proceed cautiously which is why he has been ruled out of the second Test at Lord’s.’We have also taken into account the short turnaround between Test matches and we feel it is best for Jimmy to spend the next week receiving treatment and rest in order to give him the best chance for selection for the final Test in the series.”Once he has undertaken this period of rest and rehabilitation we will be able to make a definitive decision on his availability for the third Test.”England squad Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, Chris Tremlett, Steven Finn, Jade Dernbach.

Inzamam-ul-Haq, the former Pakistan captain, has said the delay in naming the captain of the World Cup squad has led to the creation of factions within the national side

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jan-2011Former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has said the delay in naming the captain of the World Cup squad has led to the creation of factions within the national side.Currently Misbah-ul-Haq, who has seven half-centuries in his previous seven international innings, is the captain of the Test side while Shahid Afridi has led the limited-over teams over the past year. Under Misbah’s charge, Pakistan drew a Test series against South Africa in UAE, in November, before winning the two-Test series in New Zealand. Afridi returned to the helm for the ongoing one-day series, with Misbah as his deputy, and Pakistan were thrashed by nine wickets in the first game, by a New Zealand side that was on a 11-match losing streak.In the meantime, the selectors finalised their World Cup squad, but did not name the captain, making Pakistan the only team that is yet to identify its leader for the event.Inzamam said the uncertainty was hurting Pakistan’s preparations. “With only three weeks left to the World Cup, Pakistan have no captain and the blame goes to the PCB for creating an impasse which has divided the team into two groups, supporting Afridi and Misbah,” Inzamam said. “In this scenario one cannot have high expectations for the team.”Inzamam was in charge of Pakistan during their disastrous 2007 World Cup campaign, which ended with a first-round exit after a loss to Ireland, which was followed by the sudden death of their coach Bob Woolmer.”The PCB has failed to control the situation and if Pakistan fares badly in the World Cup, people will accuse the players and not the board.”The selection of the Pakistan’s 15-man squad without consulting coach Waqar Younis or the captain also came in for criticism from Inzamam. “When a team is without a captain how can a proper strategy be made? The team is playing a one-day series in New Zealand but they do not know who will be their captain in the World Cup which is very damaging.”

Chennai Super Kings’ exceptional run of form has been built on the principle of unity, a theme also visible in the other team led by MS Dhoni

Nitin Sundar07-Apr-2011Big PictureChennai Super Kings’ exceptional run of form has been built on the principle of unity, a theme also visible in the other team led by MS Dhoni. While most sides used the 2011 auction as an opportunity to clean out the closet, Chennai focussed on minimising churn. The four best players were held back, and the franchise fought hard to repurchase the likes of R Ashwin, Doug Bollinger, Mike Hussey, Shadab Jakati and S Badrinath from the auction pool. With a solid bunch of performers at their disposal, and the added advantage of familiarity among their ranks, Chennai are primed for another good season.On-field success is only one half of Chennai’s story, though. Chennai is arguably the most successfully branded IPL franchises, with their PR campaign capturing the very essence of cricket on the streets and beaches of the city. Year after year, they come up with the most endearing promos, with everyone from Dhoni to Bollinger joining the Chennai layman in the chorus. The party will resume in full force at Chepauk when they stride out in their yellow jerseys on Friday.Key playersUntil famous bat-twirl after the winning six in the World Cup, the most enduring MS Dhoni image was the uppercut he landed on his own helmet after whacking Chennai into the 2010 IPL semi-finals. It was a rare show of emotion from a man who seldom loses his composure on the field. As wicketkeeper-captain, Dhoni is the team’s brains and the nerve-centre rolled into one. His perceptive use of R Ashwin with the new ball, and positioning of a very straight mid-off to snare Kieron Pollard in the 2010 final are now part of IPL folklore.Michael Hussey is an unusual choice at the top, yet Chennai’s decision to open with him ensures stability and a solid foundation for the muscular middle order to launch from. After a personally fulfilling Ashes, Hussey was laid low by a serious hamstring injury that kept him out of the initial stages of the World Cup. With Matthew Hayden missing in action this year, Hussey should face no hindrance in resuming his alliance with M Vijay at the top of the order. He will, however, join the party a little late after Australia’s one-day tour of Bangladesh.R Ashwin’s prowess with the new ball, bowling to fields that are pulled in, is based on his accuracy. He may not be able to bowl six different balls in an over, yet he can get each one of them to land them on the same spot, and get the odd one to surprise the batsman by going away. Having picked up the carom ball by watching Ajantha Mendis bowling in Chepauk before he became an international sensation, Ashwin has become as lethal in its use as the inventor himself. Ashwin’s biggest strength, though, is not his variety, but his reluctance to over-use it.Big name inChennai have picked wisely in including Nuwan Kulasekara and Tim Southee for the new season. Their bowling attack in past editions often included three spinners, but this time they have two high-quality seaming options to fall back on. Both Kulasekara and Southee rely on exemplary seam position, and while Southee’s stock ball is the outswinger, Kulasekara specialises in mixing legcutters with huge induckers. Bollinger and Morkel are likely to be the first-choice fast bowlers, but Southee and Kulasekara could come into the picture as the tournament wears on.Big name outTwenty20 was clearly not Muttiah Muralitharan’s format, yet he found a way to be effective, by going round the wicket and twirling his offspinners and doosras from the same spot around middle and off. He formed a formidable tweak-trio with Ashwin and Shadab Jakati, and Chennai – the team and the city – will miss his presence and personality, as much as his immense skills.Below the radarS Badrinath’s India days might be behind him, but year after year he turns in stellar middle-order performances for Chennai. Badrinath’s methods will not fill up the stands – his high elbow, straight bat and along-the-ground shots are incongruous in this format, but he is the kind of man Dhoni backs. Badrinath’s domestic record speaks of a man whose appetite for runs borders on gluttony. He provides the stability in a middle order that features attackers like Raina, Morkel and Dhoni himself. Expect more of those typically unsung, unnoticed but invaluable gems from Badrinath this season.Last three seasonsChennai have been the most consistent IPL team, having made the semi-finals in each edition of the tournament. Not once was their passage into the last four straightforward – at one point in the 2010 season, they were languishing at seventh in a field of eight teams – but each time they managed to find a game-breaking performance to see them through trouble. In 2008, they had the upperhand for most of the final against Rajasthan before losing off the last ball. Their 2009 campaign was halted at the semi-final stage by Bangalore, powered by a cool innings from Manish Pandey. Chennai were unstoppable at the business end of the 2010 edition, and easily trumped a nervous Mumbai in the final.

Northern Districts held their nerve to clinch a thrilling one-wicket win over Central Districts at Fitzherbert Park to move to the top of the points table after the second round of the New Zealand Cricket one-day competition

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jan-2011Northern Districts held their nerve to clinch a thrilling one-wicket win over Central Districts at Fitzherbert Park to move to the top of the points table after the second round of the New Zealand Cricket one-day competition.Opener George Worker’s century anchored CD’s total of 280 after they were sent in to bat. CD lost Peter Ingram and Jamie How early, but Worker added 149 with Mathew Sinclair for the third wicket to set the base for a competitive total. Sinclair, who made 66, was dismissed in the 41st over with CD’s score on 206, and Worker followed in the next over. Kieran Noema-Barnett and Tim Weston blasted 64 off just 38 balls to provide the CD innings with a closing flourish. ND’s chase of 281 got off solidly with the openers BJ Watling and Daniel Flynn adding 88 within the first 18 overs. ND lost three quick wickets but Flynn’s 60-run fourth-wicket partnership with Brad Wilson, got the ND chase back on track. ND lost Flynn in the 43rd over but some big hitting from James Marshall and Bradley Scott, who was unbeaten on 25 off just 10 balls, carried them home, with just one ball to spare.Canterbury posted a comfortable 99-run win over Otago at the Queenstown Events Centre. Canterbury batsmen Rob Nicol, Michael Papps and Peter Fulton all posted solid half-centuries. Shannan Stewart and Andrew Ellis made unbeaten quickfire twenties as Canterbury reached 296 for 4 in their 50 overs. Otago started disastrously losing Aaron Redmond and Neil Broom with just 15 runs on the board. Michael Bracewell (68) and Craig Cumming (46) tried to salvage the innings with a 110-run third wicket partnership. However, once they were dismissed, the Otago innings lost momentum. The Canterbury bowlers never allowed the remaining Otago batsmen to get away as they were bowled out for 197 in the 47th over.Auckland beat Wellington by eight runs in a close game at Colin Maiden Park. The Auckland innings was anchored by captain Gareth Hopkins’ 96-ball 120. He shared crucial partnerships with Anaru Kitchen and Kyle Mills to power Auckland to a formidable 308. Wellington got off to a shaky start losing openers Josh Brodie and Stewart Rhodes within the first four overs with just five runs on the board. Grant Elliott and James Franklin put on 112 runs as the Wellington innings gained momentum. Harry Boam hit eight boundaries in his 36-ball 59 before he was dismissed. Wellington needed 45 runs off 24 balls at the stage and though Dewayne Bowden (23) got them close with some big shots, they failed to get across the line, falling short by eight runs.

Celtic currently boast the best attacking record in the Premiership, this season with 85 goals scored in 36 games.

One man who has contributed a lot to this impressive feat is Jota, who has scored seven goals and provided eight assists in 24 league appearances.

Despite the attacker only being on loan at Celtic, Ange Postecoglou has said that the club are looking to secure the Benfica youngster on a permanent deal this summer.

Should that happen, the Hoops would then have the chance to bring in another attacking star who could form a deadly duo with Jota.

Back in February, the Bhoys were linked with a move for Bristol City attacker Antoine Semenyo.

A product of the English Championship club’s youth system, the 22-year-old has made 98 senior appearances across all competitions, scoring 13 goals and delivering 20 assists along the way.

This season has seen the Englishman find the net eight times and provide 12 assists in 31 Championship appearances.

To further highlight his attacking prowess throughout this campaign, with 70 shots registered, no other player at his current club can match the number of shots on target per 90 minutes that Semenyo boasts (1.14).

In addition, the attacker has the highest average for shots (2.3) and dribbles per game (1.2) this season, along with the second highest average for key passes (1.1). This backs up why he was labelled a “dangerous” player by his former manager Phil Parkinson in the past.

As for Jota, with those same three metrics, he ranks in the top five for each at Celtic, which shows just how proficient the two players are in attack and why they could form a terrifying duo if they link up at Parkhead.

Having played in the centre-forward position for all of his appearances this season, the Bristol City star could well line up next to the Celtic loan figure, who normally plays on the wing.

Once the summer transfer window opens, if the Hoops can secure a permanent deal for Jota, adding a player like Semenyo to their ranks could be just what Postecoglou needs in order to keep his squad fresh and raring to go for next season.

However, given how important the Englishman has been for his boyhood club this season, they could well be reluctant to let him go, which may then lead to Celtic having to stump up a significant transfer fee for him.

With a suggested price tag of £15m, this is the sort of money that the Bhoys may have to shell out to secure his services.

In other news: Ange must now axe “appalling” & “pathetic” disaster duo, they’re bleeding Celtic dry

Nottingham Forest’s decision to let Anel Ahmedhodzic leave the City Ground back in 2019 could well go down as one of the biggest howlers the club has made in recent times.

Ahmedhodzic was a product of Swedish outfit Malmo FF and left the side to join Nottingham Forest’s U18s. The Bosnian with Swedish citizenship worked his way up to the Forest senior side, where he made one first-team appearance as a substitute against Newcastle United, before rejoining Malmo FF – this time as a first-team player.

After a six-month loan spell to Danish outfit Hobro IK, Ahmedhodzic was recalled and became a big part of the squad after signing a new three-year deal, with the side becoming league champions just seven months after he returned from his loan spell.

The following year was the antithesis of his spell at Forest and saw the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United and Atalanta very much interested in signing the then 22-year-old. The latter, Atalanta, were on the verge of signing Ahmedhodzic in March of 2021, though he stayed with Malmo and made his Champions League debut just five months later against Juventus.

Fast forward to the present day and Ahmedhodzic finds himself on loan at Ligue 1 outfit Bordeaux, having established himself as a starter since joining in January.

Bordeaux have an option to buy the 6 foot 4 centre-back for just €4m (£3.3m) which is a bargain, considering his market value has elevated to £6.3m, according to Transfermarkt.

At 23-years-old his potential is limitless, though if you were to take a look at his stats, they would suggest he is a box-to-box midfielder.

They are peculiar to say the least, but nevertheless impressive. As a centre-back, it is very rare to achieve a shot-creating actions average of one SCA per 90 minutes. Though that suggests everything you need to know about Ahmedhodzic and the system that he operates in.

The Bosnia international plays in a back three and functions as an overlapping centre-back, with his ability in possession a key enabler in his desire to progress up the pitch.

He’s been described by Fabrizio Romano as a “top talent” and it is easy to see why.

If Ahmedhodzic keeps up this trajectory, he will have Nottingham Forest deeply regretting their decision to sell him after he was afforded just one appearance.

In other news: Forget Grabban: Cooper must now unleash Forest’s “clinical” £12.7k-p/w machine…