Sepúlveda, Rivero, Faravelli, and Bogusz scored for La Máquina in a dominant display.

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Cruz Azul won their first international title since 2014The club qualifies for the 2029 Club World Cup and the 2025 Intercontinental CupVancouver missed the chance to become the first Canadian team to win the Champions CupGet the MLS Season Pass today!Stream games nowGetty Images SportWHAT HAPPENED?

Jesper Sørensen’s Vancouver Whitecaps were overwhelmed by a dominant Cruz Azul, who claimed their seventh title in the tournament, tying Club América as the most successful club in Champions Cup history.

A brace from Ángel Sepúlveda, along with goals from Ignacio Rivero, Lorenzo Faravelli, and Mateusz Bogusz, powered La Máquina to a commanding win at Estadio Olímpico Universitario.

With this loss, the Whitecaps missed the chance to become the first Canadian team to win the tournament and will not take part in the 2029 Club World Cup or the 2025 Intercontinental Cup.

The Canadian side fell behind early – Rivero opened the scoring in the eighth minute – and never recovered. By halftime, they were already down 4–0. Sepúlveda completed his brace in the 50th minute, sealing the 5–0 scoreline and underlining a night in which Vancouver never found their footing on the pitch in Mexico City.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The Champions Cup remains in Mexico as Vicente Sánchez's Cruz Azul claimed the title with an impressive rout at Estadio Ciudad Universitaria. As a result, Cruz Azul secured their place in the 2029 Club World Cup and the 2025 Intercontinental Cup.

On the other end, Sørensen’s side failed to become the first Canadian team to win the regional championship, and the MLS continues its title drought in the competition, which dates back to 2022.

For Cruz Azul, this victory is hugely important. It silences recent criticism surrounding the potential departure of Sánchez and speculation about the arrival of manager Guillermo Almada, who has now officially parted ways with Pachuca.

Getty Images SportDID YOU KNOW?

Cruz Azul lifted the Champions Cup trophy for the first time since the 2013–2014 season.

The last time they won the tournament, they defeated Deportivo Toluca on away goals after a 1–1 aggregate score over two legs – a format used at the time. The away goals rule gave the edge to claim the title.

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR WHITECAPS?

Sørensen’s team will need to bounce back quickly from this heavy defeat, as they visit the Seattle Sounders next Sunday. Despite the setback, the Whitecaps remain atop the Western Conference with 32 points and two games in hand.

By virtue of finishing in the top two, both teams who are similar yet dissimilar in their methods, will have two shots at reaching the final

Shashank Kishore22-May-20235:49

Moody: Super Kings might turn to Jadeja in the powerplay

Big picture: Titans and CSK – similar yet differentIt is no coincidence that Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings, teams that have built their campaigns around continuity, consistency in selection and role clarity, have earned the right to a second chance by finishing in the top two.MS Dhoni’s leadership traits are something Hardik Pandya, his opposite number, has deeply embodied over time. The backing of misfiring seniors, handholding junior players, encouraging the uncapped, boosting morale of players on the bench are all characteristics of a popular leader for whom the team would go the extra mile.Hardik’s handling of Vijay Shankar, once seen as his competitor, or young Noor Ahmad and Josh Little, to cite a few examples, has been as exemplary as Dhoni’s handling of Ajinkya Rahane, Tushar Deshpande or Matheesha Pathirana.Related

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Malinga on Pathirana: 'I somehow want to make this guy even better than me'

Deshpande has the pace, the wickets, and the makings of a bright future

Hardik is Neymar as Neymar could rarely be

Shami succeeds flying in the face of T20 logic

With the bat, Vijay is enjoying his best year at the IPL with the backing he has seldom received elsewhere. Mohit Sharma’s journey from a net bowler, who swallowed his ego to sharpen his skills last year, to being one of the key bowlers this season is also a result of the captain’s backing.Rahane’s career appeared to have hit a dead end until he linked up with CSK. An injury to Ben Stokes gave him a foot in the door. Five games in, he broke the doors down with a batting approach seldom seen earlier. Now, as he gears up for the playoffs, Rahane’s career has received an unlikely second, or maybe third, wind with the prospects of being a World Test champion looming.Shivam Dube’s journey from an inconsistent allrounder to an on-demand six hitter against spin or Deshpande’s evolution from an erratic seamer riddled with no-ball problems and consistency to a gun striker are all examples of players thriving under the freedom and backing Dhoni has given them.Tuesday’s Qualifier 1 will pit these two similar, yet very different teams against each other in what promises to be a blockbuster clash. CSK will enjoy more than a slight edge, given they’ll have the home advantage emphatically by their side. The Chennai fans will have one more chance to celebrate their larger-than-life icon, their talismanic leader as a place in the final is a step away.Titans will quickly have to shake off weariness from their final league fixture against RCB that went past midnight. A long road trip to the airport and the subsequent processes to board will be perhaps longer than the flying time to Chennai itself. To do this all in the space of a few hours, knowing there’s another game to look forward to the next evening will no doubt be another test for the table-toppers.That they’ve made it this far for a second straight season is as much credit to the team as it is to the management. Now for the opportunity to be only the second team, after CSK in 2011 and 2012, to have a second straight crack at a home final in their second year of existence. It can’t get bigger than that.7:14

Runorder: What can MI and CSK’s turnaround be attributed to?

Form guideChennai Super Kings WLWWL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Gujarat Titans WWLWWTeam news: Will Hardik bowl?Hardik hasn’t bowled in three games now. When he last bowled in a game on May 7 against LSG, he didn’t complete his quota. Against RCB, without Hardik the sixth bowler, Yash Dayal and Mohit conceded 93 off their eight overs. If Hardik isn’t bowling, they might require either Dasun Shanaka or Rahul Tewatia to chip in, depending on conditions in Chennai.Josh Little, who featured in eight of Titans’ first 10 games, is back in India after international duty with Ireland and could replace Dayal in the side. If Titans go down that route, Abhinav Manohar is likely to return in place of Shanaka.CSK don’t believe in making too many changes, so expect them to go unchanged.Impact Player StrategyTitans have mostly used Shubman Gill or Vijay Shankar as Impact Player when they bat. With Gill set to play the WTC final within a week of the IPL finishing, it’s perhaps prudent to not expose him to potential on-field injuries. That said, Vijay gives them an additional bowling option, if required. However, he hasn’t been called in to bowl a single over so far this season. With the ball, one of them will likely be substituted for Mohit Sharma.Gujarat Titans (probable XII): 1 , 2 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 3 Hardik Pandya (capt), 4 Vijay Shankar, 5 David Miller, 6 Dasun Shanaka, 7 Rahul Tewatia, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Yash Dayal, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Noor Ahmad, 12 Ambati Rayudu’s sharp catching may have earned him the right to not be subbed off in the Qualifier 1•BCCIPathirana and Dube have been used as Impact Players in each of their last three matches. In the previous game, Ambati Rayudu had a chance to provide a rare glimpse into his fielding abilities with a stunning catch at mid-off. So, after having a minimal role on the field for much of the group stages, Rayudu may well have earned the right for continuity. Is Dhoni thinking that way, though?Chennai Super Kings (probableXII): 1 Devon Conway, 2 Ruturaj Gaikwad, 3 Ajinkya Rahane, 4 , 5 Moeen Ali, 6 Ambati Rayudu, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 9 Deepak Chahar, 10 Maheesh Theekshana, 11 Tushar Desphande, 12 Stats that matter Jadeja has a particularly good match-up against Hardik, having dismissed him twice in four innings. In comparison, Gill has struck at 153 against him without being dismissed even once in 36 deliveries. Shami has the wood over CSK’s openers. He has dismissed Conway on each of the two occasions they’ve faced off earlier, including the tournament opener. Shami also has the lid over Gaikwad, who has only managed to score at a strike rate of 70. It’s the lowest strike rate he has had against any pacer off whom he has faced at least 15 deliveries. Gaikwad hasn’t let being dismissed by Rashid alter his approach against the legspinner. His strike rate of 147 is the third-best in the IPL among all batters who’ve faced a minimum of five overs from Rashid. The 32 sixes Tewatia has hit in the death overs is the joint-most – alongside Jadeja – by an Indian since IPL 2020Pitch and conditionsHot weather, surfaces on the dryer side and spin-loading – all pretty common at this time of the year in Chennai. Expect it to be no different. The defending team will have to contend with some dew later at night. Four of the seven games so far this season at Chepauk have been won by the chasing side.

Stunning all-round performance against Ireland at home has lifted Hayley Matthews in all three tables

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Jul-2023

Suzie Bates has moved up three spots to No. 5 in the women’s T20I batting rankings following scores of 44 and 52 in the first two games in Sri Lanka, while Hayley Matthews and Amelia Kerr have both closed in on Ashleigh Gardner at the top of the allrounders’ table.Chamari Athapaththu batted New Zealand out of the ODI series that preceded the T20Is, totalling 248 runs while being dismissed just once in three innings to give her side a 2-1 win, but New Zealand hit back in the T20Is, winning the first two to pocket the series. Their star performers in the two T20Is were Bates and Kerr with the bat and Lea Tahuhu with the ball, and that reflected in the ICC rankings.Bates went up to 677 rating points, behind Tahlia McGrath (784), Beth Mooney (777), Smriti Mandhana (728) and team-mate Sophie Devine (683), and another good performance could take her higher before she leaves Sri Lanka.Full rankings tables

Click here for the full team rankings

Click here for the full player rankings

Kerr has scored 34 and 33 not out in Sri Lanka so far and the two wickets she picked up in the two games took her closer to the top of the allrounders’ chart, placing her at No. 3.The standout all-round performance of the week came from Matthews, the West Indies captain, who scored 135 runs and picked up eight wickets, including a hat-trick in the final game, to script a 3-0 sweep of Ireland at home. She is at No. 2 among allrounders, up two spots to No. 17 among batters, and up three spots to seventh among bowlers.Tahuhu also moved up within the top ten among bowlers, her four-for in the second T20I against Sri Lanka lifting her two places to sixth.On to Bangladesh vs India, where Harmanpreet Kaur was the Player of the Match with her 35-ball 54 not out to lead India to a comfortable win in the first T20I. That took her up four places to joint tenth.At the end of the T20I leg of the Ashes, which got over on July 8 with England winning 2-1 and bouncing right back in the contest after conceding the one-off Test, Mooney, who scored 115 runs, closed in on McGrath at the top of the batters’ table, just seven points separating the two.

The PCB presented its “hybrid” solution for hosting the 2023 Asia Cup again to the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), believing that this time it had resolved logistical and technical concerns the ACC had raised. Officials from both sides met in Dubai on Tuesday, but it emerged that Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) have both objected to holding a part of the tournament in the UAE.The hybrid model was the solution the PCB had proposed to account for the fact that India would not travel to Pakistan for the tournament because of ongoing political tensions between the governments of the two countries. The proposed solution will have India playing all their games in the UAE, with the rest of the tournament played out in Pakistan.But ESPNcricinfo understands that the BCB and SLC cited logistical challenges involved in travelling between Pakistan and a second country during the Asia Cup, which is scheduled to be played in September, a month before the ODI World Cup is held across India. Both boards also pointed out that the extreme heat in the UAE in the first half of September was a deterrent, too.Related

• PCB wants four out of 13 Asia Cup matches to be played in Pakistan

• Pakistan could play their World Cup matches in Bangladesh

“We have written to the ACC to say that we are against the hybrid model,” Mohan de Silva, the SLC secretary, told ESPNcricinfo. “But beyond that, no final decision has been reached. It’s very hot in the UAE at that time of year.”In what is becoming an increasingly vexed issue, a PCB official countered by claiming that the board has emails from both BCB and SLC confirming they have no issues playing in Pakistan. The official also pointed out that last year’s Asia Cup was played from August 27 to September 11 in the UAE – the same window the boards are objecting to this time. In 2018, a 50-over version of the Asia Cup was also played in the UAE, from September 15-28. Both those events moved to the UAE as an alternative; in the first instance the tournament was supposed to be played in India but was moved because of India-Pakistan political tensions; last year it was shifted from Sri Lanka because of the political and economic turmoil the country was going through at the time.One suggestion is for the PCB to follow the example of SLC, which retained the hosting rights for the 2022 edition but host it outside the country. This time, Sri Lanka has been talked about as a probable neutral venue and de Silva said SLC was ready. “If the offer is there to play the tournament in Sri Lanka, we will take it,” he said. “Pakistan will be the official hosts.”But the PCB remains adamant that its solution works for everyone. “The PCB presented a hybrid model that resolves issues of logistics and travel and production,” a PCB official told ESPNcricinfo. “The board reiterated its position that we would not play the Asia Cup if the Pakistan-plus-neutral-venue model is rejected.”Afghanistan, meanwhile, are neutral. “In the previous two ACC meetings, we have strongly emphasised the importance of conducting the event at the scheduled time,” an Afghanistan spokesperson told ESPNcricinfo. “As for the venue, we are abiding by the decisions made by the ACC and have no interest in favouring or objecting to any particular board’s stance on the matter. Our priority is to ensure a fair and competitive tournament that benefits the growth and development of cricket in the region.”India and Pakistan have been grouped together along with Nepal in the six-nation Asia Cup, scheduled to be held in the 50-over format as preparation for the World Cup. Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are in the other group. A total of 13 matches, including the final, will be played across 13 days. Like the format from 2022, the top two teams from each group advance to the Super 4s and the top two teams then contest the final. That leaves open the possibility of India and Pakistan playing three times, should both make it to the final.

Big picture: India’s young batters vs England’s young spinners

It feels like we’ve been here before. Scores are level. Expectation is high. An England player had visa issues. India’s No. 4 couldn’t make it. It’s late January 2024 all over again. What a time to be alive.Ben Stokes is about to play his 100th Test match. R Ashwin will likely be taking his 500th Test wicket. James Anderson is in sight of 700. India’s dominance at home is under threat. Bazball is not just hype. The Apple Vision Pro is out making reality redundant. There are continuing advancements to make mind control possible. The Deadpool 3 trailer has dropped. What more could anyone ask for?If you’re Sarfaraz Khan, then maybe a first ever India cap. The 26-year-old has worked all his life to become an international cricketer, collecting mind-boggling numbers over the course of recent domestic seasons, and is set to finally take that most coveted step up. As a middle-order batter in subcontinent conditions, he offers a lot of potential, which is the least that can be said about someone averaging and striking at 70 in first-class cricket.Related

• How Bazball alters one of the fundamental truths of Test cricket

• Kuldeep: 'Bazball has made bowlers plan how to restrict runs'

• England's unlikely Mr Consistent seeks series-defining moment

• Can India's batters restore the balance of power?

• Stokes' aggression is England's new mantra for success

It does, however, mean that India will be relying on a group of batters still only learning what life as a Test cricketer is like. Seriously, the only thing greener is on lunch menus or is 6’4″ tall and leading England’s spin attack. This battle between up-and-coming members of the hosts and up-and-coming members of their guests has been one of the more fascinating and unexpected subplots of this whole tour. Although in Rajkot, a couple of established stars might take back centre stage. India’s inexperience puts them on the back foot against the guile of James Anderson and the pace of Mark Wood.Especially considering how they have been leaving runs on the board. Rahul Dravid has been telling India that they need to be more pragmatic. Stokes, though, doesn’t really look like he sets a lot of store in such things. He kept tossing the ball to Tom Hartley even as he was smashed all over the park, telling him everything was fine, keep at it. Both methods worked. Yashasvi Jaiswal benefited from a little restraint, scoring a double-century in an innings where no one else made more than 34. Hartley recovered from being hit for six first ball to become his team’s leading wicket-taker after two Tests.A series that was supposed to be headlined by the likes of Virat Kohli and Joe Root and Ravindra Jadeja and Stokes himself is now following a very different narrative.

Form guide

India WLWLD
England LWWDWMark Wood has replaced Shoaib Bashir in England’s XI•Gareth Copley / Getty

In the spotlight: Rohit Sharma and Joe Root

The 2021 series between these two teams offered a massive challenge to batters on both sides. Of 156 innings played, there were only 19 that went past fifty, and of those 19, there was one that stood out. Rohit Sharma walked out onto a dust bowl in Chennai and produced a knock that has become something of a blueprint for his opposition this time around, a hundred that was an ode to attacking instinct. He hasn’t been able to summon the same kind of otherworldly strokeplay this time – even though the pitches are much more amenable for batting – but there are three games still left and his spirits remain quite high. India will be relying on his strengths to guide them towards the kind of first-innings totals that can help them dictate terms.Another high performer from 2021 – the top-scorer in fact – has more overs under his belt (64) than runs on the board (52). Joe Root swept India to the extremes that they had to go to in order to win that series three years ago, but right now, he isn’t even getting those starts that the experts would pick up on so often that it became sort of a personality trait. “You look up and all of a sudden Joe Root’s on 30 not out.” Jasprit Bumrah is a significant factor for things turning out this way. The head-to-head after two matches reads 1 run off 10 balls and two dismissals. Both men will be refreshed after a mid-series break, meaning this thing is just getting started.

Team news: Jadeja set to return, Jurel in line for debut

With Kohli unavailable, Shreyas Iyer left out and KL Rahul injured, India’s middle-order is a bit threadbare in terms of experience. Jadeja’s return should help there – he has a fine record in Rajkot, his home ground, and looks all but certain to play. The rest of the slack falls on a bunch of rookies who have shown a lot of promise at domestic level but now have to prove that they can cut it here too. There has also been a bit of focus on wicketkeeper KS Bharat’s output in front of the stumps, which brings Dhruv Jurel quite firmly into the picture.India (probable) 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 3 Shubman Gill, 4 Rajat Patidar, 5 Sarfaraz Khan, 6 Ravindra Jadeja, 7 Dhruv Jurel/KS Bharat (wk), 8 R Ashwin, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Mohammed SirajEngland, who played the first two Tests with just one fast bowler, will go into this one with both Anderson and Wood. Their batting remains unchanged.England: 1 Zak Crawley, 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Ollie Pope, 4 Joe Root, 5 Jonny Bairstow, 6 Ben Stokes (capt), 7 Ben Foakes (wk), 8 Rehan Ahmed, 9 Tom Hartley, 10 Mark Wood, 11 James AndersonRajkot is where Ravindra Jadeja has played most of his domestic cricket for Saurashtra•Gareth Copley / Getty

Pitch and conditions: It’s cool and it’s flat

There are runs expected in Rajkot. The local boy Jadeja said the surface will start out flat and then take a little turn as natural wear and tear sets in. The weather has been quite cool in the lead-up to the Test – early 20C in the mornings, rising to low 30C in the afternoons – and is expected to be so for the duration of it as well, so that’s another good sign for the batters. Without a lot of sun, the pitch might not break up as quickly.

Stats and trivia

• There are 210 people with Test double-centuries and 752 with Test five-fors. But only 34 have ever done both. Stokes is among this incredible group of allrounders, peppered with some fun outliers (Kraigg Brathwaite, Virender Sehwag and Jason Gillespie).
• Since his debut back in January 2018, Bumrah has the best bowling average in Test cricket (20.19) of all bowlers with at least 100 wickets in this time.
• England’s spinners have more wickets (33 vs 23) and a better average (34 vs 38) than India’s spinners at this point in the series, but that’s not entirely new. Ashwin and Jadeja have shown previously that they are capable of picking up their performances while other visiting teams have fallen away after bright starts.
• Anderson is five wickets away from 700 in Tests and, from there, he will be eyeing Shane Warne’s tally of 708.
• There is indication that India’s XI in Rajkot will include as many as two debutants, which doesn’t happen very often. They’ve had to dip that far into their bench only four times since 2013 and two of those were during another injury-hit series against Australia in 2020-21.

Quotes

“Obviously I’m very excited because I’ve been playing with him for 12-13 years. To achieve this milestone is a really, really big thing, to complete 500 Test wickets. I’m very happy for him. I thought he would complete his 500 wickets in the first match, but it’s okay, whatever is written in destiny. He will complete it in Rajkot, in my hometown.”

Although Nair fell for 74 in the last session of the day, Wadkar stayed unbeaten on 56

Sreshth Shah13-Mar-2024

Mumbai remained favourites to lift their 42nd Ranji Trophy title, but Vidarbha’s batters resisted on a slow-moving fourth day. Karun Nair and Vidarbha captain Akshay Wadkar were the two main obstructions that delayed Mumbai’s push for a win, although Nair’s dismissal late in the day for 74 left one end of Vidarbha’s batting exposed. Two-time champions Vidarbha finished the day on 248 for 5, still 290 runs away from the 538 target.Shreyas Iyer, who had scored a 111-ball 95 in Mumbai’s second innings on the third day, did not take to the field on Wednesday due to back pain. ESPNcricinfo learnt that Iyer received some treatment during the day and should be good to field on Thursday. He had missed Mumbai’s quarter-final against Baroda with back spasms after he was released from India’s Test squad during the series against England.Vidarbha’s slow and careful batting on Wednesday meant Mumbai had to work hard for their five wickets, all of which fell to spin. It was apparent early in the day that even though Vidarbha had conceded a first-innings lead – a decisive factor if the game ends in a draw – they did not want to lose outright, at least on the penultimate day of the final. Their batters attempted to play the long game, scoring only 238 runs in 90 overs on the day at a run rate of 2.64.Mumbai’s three spinners bowled the bulk of the overs with the surface offering plenty of turn. They tried to use the rough on either side of the stumps and found purchase and uneven bounce. Mumbai earned their first wicket when Shams Mulani’s left-arm orthodox spin got rid of Atharva Taide (32) lbw after the first drinks break of the morning in the 19th over. Two balls later, offspinner Tanush Kotian had Dhruv Shorey (28) driving down the wrong line and pegged his off stump back to send them sliding from 62 for 0 to 64 for 2.After lunch, Mumbai captain Ajinkya Rahane went to Musheer Khan for his left-arm orthodox spin, and the 19-year-old got ample bounce and turn with his high-arm release. But a quicker, skiddy delivery from Musheer accounted for the No. 3 Aman Mokhade (32) when he was deemed lbw. Yash Rathod then aimed to dead-bat after the third wicket, but his 39-ball vigil ended on 7 when Kotian darted one in and trapped the left-hand batter inside his crease, and then convinced his captain to use a review successfully.With the score at 133 for 4, and almost half the day’s play remaining, the onus was on Vidarbha’s two most experienced batters, Nair and Wadkar. Nair had walked out in the 20th over and played ultra defensively through the day. Against the spinners, he lunged forward often to defend, and also looked comfortable on the back foot.The occasional unsuccessful reverse sweep aside, Nair reined in his shots all day. He also survived a few gloved defensive shots that went over the close-in fielders wearing the helmet and an lbw decision on umpire’s call. He was eventually out seven overs into the second new ball when Musheer got one to zip across and kiss Nair’s outside edge on the way to the wicketkeeper. Nair struck only three fours in his 240-ball innings.Wadkar, on the other hand, displayed controlled aggression to finish on an unbeaten 91-ball 56 at stumps. He started his innings with two fours in his first six balls and played shots more on the merit of the deliveries. Wadkar used the depth of the crease well to pull through the leg side when the tired spinners landed balls short. After Nair fell, Wadkar reached his 18th first-class fifty in style by slapping Tushar Deshpande for six over backward point and ensured he would return on the final day alongside the No. 7 Harsh Dubey who showed glimpses of his aggressive style by smacking a six to long-on minutes before stumps.

The PCB Women’s Wing head said the decision “was quite disappointing” but hopes the league takes off soon with stability returning to the board

Danyal Rasool09-Feb-2024The PCB has pushed back a commitment they made over three years ago to launch a women’s T20 league and shelved women’s exhibition matches on the eve of the start of the ninth season of the PSL.In 2023, three women’s exhibition matches featuring players from countries including South Africa, England and New Zealand were held, but this time around, it’s not on the agenda. Tania Mallick, head of the PCB women’s wing since 2021, attributed this to the uncertainty around the PCB chairman, saying the interim management committee led by Zaka Ashraf until last month did not wish to financially commit to a women’s league.”The impression I got was they did not feel they were in a position to make such big financial decisions,” Mallick told ESPNcricinfo. “What was conveyed to us was the next committee and administration would do this, ‘we don’t want to’. The obstacle is not within our management or the financial officers within the PCB. It was the interim management committee that was not willing to commit. I don’t feel frustrated with my management because they all agree [we need a league]. Even the PSL department, we had planned everything but it was taken off the board at the last minute. This was towards the tail-end of the Zaka regime. It was quite disappointing for all of us and I told the girls that repeatedly.”Related

• Former Pakistan captain Javeria Khan retires from international cricket

• Mohsin Naqvi elected PCB chairman for three years

• Fatima Sana: 'The new approach we have taken makes me hopeful for ICC events'

There was little to no public communication from the PCB regarding its plans or intentions for women’s cricket for the best part of 2023. Much of the year was a difficult period for Pakistan women’s cricket, though it ended on a note of optimism as the side whitewashed South Africa 3-0 in a home T20I series, before becoming the first Asian side to beat New Zealand in New Zealand, stunning them 2-1 in the T20Is.After that series, Fatima Sana spoke to ESPNcricinfo, and said that the three exhibition matches had “opened up the minds of our girls” and that “all the players want” to have their own league. The PCB has toyed with the idea of various leagues besides the PSL across three different chairs, with the Pakistan Junior League taking place in 2022. Last year, a local T10 league was also mooted, which Mallick said would have potentially included women’s games.But for a board that once spoke about getting Asia’s first women’s T20 league off the ground, things have changed significantly.”Every new administration who comes in also doesn’t necessarily have the same kind of interest in women’s cricket,” Mallick said. “I still feel Pakistan is at the emerging stage of women’s cricket and needs to go a long way. So [the administrative turnover] has a huge impact. We always wonder if we’ll have a women’s league or exhibition matches now, but if we had one chairman these question marks would not have been there. A couple of chairmen announced it’ll definitely happen but because every chairman had such a short span of time, they spent most of their time firefighting and couldn’t have a strategic policy.””There was talk about a T10, and women were a part of that but unfortunately that couldn’t take place and women’s exhibition matches have also been pushed back. But all the chairmen that have come in, it’s not as if they’re unwilling to support us. They’ve imposed no financial cap on us to prevent us from holding camps or sending our Under-19 team to Bangladesh. But the problem is that normally with a chairman we can plan for a three-year period. There was a restriction there because we were only able to plan for a few months here and there.For Mallick, there is a possible reason for optimism, as there are signs of stability returning to the PCB. Mohsin Naqvi was elected as PCB chairman on a three-year term earlier this week, and barring significant unforeseen events, should be in the role for the foreseeable future.The Pakistan women’s team celebrate a historic series victory in New Zealand•Getty Images

“With the new chairman coming in hopefully we can plan for a longer period,” Mallick said. “Higher management have told us repeatedly that it’s not that we are not supporting it, we definitely support it but as soon as we have firmer footing, it will be in place. We are hopeful we don’t have to go back on that one because I felt the exhibition matches had a very good impact in terms of exposure.”Mallick was unwilling to commit to a firm date for a women’s league. While she hopes it will happen “earlier than 2025”, that would mean a league happening independent of the PSL, as well as the PCB carving out a window that does not clash with other stakeholders, a scenario that is optimistic to the point of being unrealistic.But having been in the job for more than two years, Mallick admitted that having had just three exhibition matches to show by way of a league has been “frustrating”. She feels attracting top talent from around the world will not be an issue, pointing to the players that made the trip over for those exhibition matches, and adding Pakistan have received expressions of interest from players around the world.She also warned against the dangers of a league rushed through, though. “We don’t want to compromise on the quality of the league we put up. If you saw the exhibition matches, the broadcast, everything was at par with the men’s league,” she said. “It has to be of that quality, anything below that is not acceptable. The new chairman has only just come in, so you really can’t say how it’ll be taken up in the future with the Champions Trophy taking place in 2025 as well, but we’re very hopeful.”Pakistani women cricketers don’t get called up to many leagues. Fatima Sana was a one-off because she gave such an exceptional performance in New Zealand and she was asked to stay back. They don’t get that exposure, and I think that’s really holding us back. As the landscape in women’s cricket is changing, the style of women’s cricket is changing. Our girls only play against each other, and when they play, they play against international teams.”Playing a league is very liberating because you don’t have the pressure of international matches. When you play in a league, you can bring out your personality and play the way you want to. You play against senior players, you learn their style and learn from those coaches. But our girls don’t get that.”

New Fiorentina coach Stefano Pioli said he walked away from Saudi Arabia after a short stint because he craved a more pressured challenge.

• Pioli reveals he left Al-Nassr to chase “more challenge”
• The 59-year-old said he "never felt so prepared" to return to Serie A
• Stefano was officially presented by Fiorentina on Tuesday

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Pioli was officially introduced on Tuesday as Fiorentina’s new manager on a three-year deal. During the Q&A with the media, the Italian was asked about his exit from Saudi Arabia after just one season. The former Al-Nassr coach said he enjoyed his time in the Middle East but admitted that he missed the challenge and pressure of managing in Serie A.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Pioli joined Al-Nassr in September 2024, replacing Luis Castro following a poor start to the season. However, the 59-year-old didn't enjoy much success either. He failed to win any silverware during the 2024-25 season, finishing third in the Saudi Pro League alongside defeats in the King's Cup and the AFC Champions League.

  The Italian previously managed Fiorentina from 2017 to 2019 before a successful spell at AC Milan, where he won the 2021–22 Scudetto. He now returns to lead La Viola once again.

• WHAT STEFANO PIOLI SAID

  In his first press conference since returning, Pioli described his decision to leave Al Nassr and return to Serie A.

  "I've discovered a new culture that has made me even more flexible. But I felt a deep desire to pursue challenges that are more pressured but can give me greater satisfaction."

  The former AC Milan manager also described his emotional connection with Fiorentina, saying that he feels a very strong bond with the Serie A club.

  “I feel Florence inside me… I have a very strong bond with the club; it was the right thing to do.”

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  WHAT NEXT FOR STEFANO PIOLI AND FIORENTINA?

  Pioli now shifts focus to preparing Fiorentina for a strong 2025-26 campaign. After a flat last season, the Serie A club is actively looking to bolster their squad in the ongoing transfer window. Fiorentina have signed 18-year-old Swiss defender Eman Kosp from Barcelona and are reportedly eyeing Inter’s out-of-favour midfielder Kristjan Asllani, who has an €18 million price tag.

Wrexham are reportedly interested in signing Leeds United outcast Patrick Bamford before the summer transfer window closes.

Bamford not part of Leeds' plansWrexham targeting the strikerDespite big transfer 'gamble'Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Former Man United and Blackburn chief scout Mick Brown claims that Wrexham are keeping tabs on the 31-year-old, along with several other Championship teams. Despite the one-time England international having a string of injuries in recent years, Brown believes the Welsh outfit are prepared to take that "gamble" on his fitness.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWHAT BROWN SAID

"Wrexham are interested in signing Bamford," he told Football Insider. "They see him as a player who can add that extra bit of experience and quality to their team. He’s certainly not a Premier League player at this stage of his career, the manager knows that and that’s why Leeds are looking to let him go. His injury history over the last couple of years has been a concern as well. In the Championship, you’re playing so many games, you have to be fit enough to do that. For a team like Wrexham, I think they’ll be prepared to take a gamble on his fitness. They’ve just been promoted and want to bring in players to help them bridge that gap, and for that you need experience, with Bamford has plenty of. I know a few Championship clubs are looking at him, though, so they’re not alone. Wrexham are going to be ambitious and think they can tempt him to join them so I’d expect something to happen before the transfer window closes."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney's Wrexham have made a number of statement signings as they get ready for the new Championship season. They have reportedly broken their transfer record to sign left-back Liberato Cacace and midfielder Lewis O'Brien, while attacking midfielder Josh Windass, striker Ryan Hardie and midfielder George Thomason are shrewd acquisitions. They arguably need more forwards, and Bamford – who scored 17 Premier League goals in the 2020/21 season – could fit the bill if he's fit, which is a big if.

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GettyWHAT NEXT?

Bamford, who was told by Leeds boss Daniel Farke that he is not part of their plans as they prepare for life in the Premier League next season, has just over a month to secure a summer exit. But his high wages may make it difficult for Championship teams to afford him.

Deepti’s unbeaten 53 ends up in a losing cause with Warriorz’s top order falling cheaply to Saika Ishaque and Co

S Sudarshanan07-Mar-20242:25

Takeaways: Kerr steps up with the bat for Mumbai

Mumbai Indians went second on the WPL points table as they thumped UP Warriorz by 42 runs in their return fixture on Thursday. They posted 160 for 6 on the back of handy knocks from Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amelia Kerr and Harmanpreet Kaur, who then marshalled her troops well to shut out Warriorz with Saika Ishaque and Sciver-Brunt playing leading roles.Mumbai Indians struck three times in the first 25 balls of the Warriorz chase, and they never quite recovered. Deepti Sharma, batting at No. 5, finished unbeaten on 53 off 36 balls, but the task was too much for her after the top order had faltered, Alyssa Healy, Kiran Navgire and Chamari Athapaththu aggregating 13 runs between them.Only net run rate now separates Mumbai from Delhi Capitals, the table-toppers at this stage, but Capitals have a game in hand.Saika Ishaque picked up two top-order wickets•BCCISciver-Brunt and Harmanpreet take chargeAthapaththu had Mumbai questioning their decision to bat first. She struck twice in her first two overs to dismiss the openers, Hayley Matthews and Yastika Bhatia. That was followed by the first key partnership for Mumbai when Sciver-Brunt and Harmanpreet got together. Sciver-Brunt used the depth of the crease against the spin of Athapaththu, Grace Harris and Rajeshwari Gayakwad to help the side end the powerplay on 37 for 2.Even after the field spread, she managed to find boundaries with regularity even as Harmanpreet was struggling for some fluency. Harmanpreet broke the shackles only when Saima Thakor, Warriorz’s only fast bowler, came into the attack. Harmanpreet reached out to a wide delivery from her to crack the ball through point before sweeping a full toss off Sophie Ecclestone through backward square leg.Together Sciver-Brunt and Harmanpreet added 59 off 46 for the third wicket. Importantly, they hit a four on the first or second ball in five of the seven full overs they faced.S Sajana took a stunning catch to send back Sophie Ecclestone•BCCIKerr and Sajana add the finishing touchesSciver-Brunt was done in by an arm ball from Gayakwad that skidded through, while Harmanpreet missed her heave across the line against Thakor. In a matter of 27 balls, Mumbai lost three wickets heading into the death overs. In Kerr and S Sajana, though, they had the batters to finish the innings.Kerr has been in solid touch with the bat and is Mumbai’s leading run-getter this season. She manoeuvred the ball well to pick up boundaries – going deep in her crease to cut length balls, moving across to access the area behind square leg – and kept Mumbai ticking along. But she should have been caught at cover when she was on 34 off 19, but Ecclestone couldn’t hang on.Sajana, who began her WPL career with a first-ball six in the opening game, slogged one through deep-backward square leg for four before a misfield at long-on gave her another boundary. She hit back-to-back fours off Ecclestone in the last over too, as Mumbai scored 38 off the last four overs, their partnership worth 43 off just 26.Deepti Sharma waged a lone battle for Warriorz with the bat, scoring an unbeaten half-century•BCCIWarriorz no match for Mumbai Indians’ attackWhat looked like a fighting total proved to be a winning one. Harmanpreet dangled the carrot to Kiran Navgire by having left-arm spinner Ishaque partner Shabnim Ismail with the new ball. Navgire hit the second ball from the spinner over deep midwicket for a six but ended up yorking herself in the same over. Matthews then got one to stop on Athapaththu, who miscued to cover.Which is when Ismail, who bowled the fastest recorded ball in women’s cricket in the previous outing, delivered perhaps the ball of the tournament. It nipped back sharply from good length at 124kph to cut Healy in half and hit the stumps. Harmanpreet operated with Ismail and Matthews for six straight overs, in which Warriorz could manage only 18 for 2.Harris, who was off the mark on her 15th ball with a six, then fell to Ishaque in the tenth over. In a sequence similar to Navgire’s, Harris hit Ishaque for a six over long-on before being bowled on the next ball. Harris and Deepti consumed 31 balls during their partnership, in which they added only 26. Warriorz’s highest partnership was for the eighth wicket, when Deepti and Uma Chetry added 37 off 26 balls.Ishaque picked up three wickets on the night after starting WPL 2024 with three wicketless outings.