West Ham boss Nuno Espírito Santo has reportedly made his feelings about recruitment crystal clear to the board ahead of January, with the Portuguese adamant that they need to strengthen multiple areas of the squad.

West Ham told by Nuno to make three signings in January

Second bottom after conceding more Premier League goals than any other side so far, losing six of their first eight matches, West Ham are staring relegation in the face if they don’t improve quickly.

Nuno is yet to win his first game as manager since taking over from Graham Potter in September, and they looked completely bereft of ideas in their last outing against Brentford at the London Stadium.

Sunderland 3-0 West Ham

West Ham 1-5 Chelsea

Nottingham Forest 0-3 West Ham

West Ham 0-3 Tottenham

West Ham 1-2 Crystal Palace

Everton 1-1 West Ham

Arsenal 2-0 West Ham

West Ham 0-2 Brentford

West Ham fielded a much-changed line-up to face the Bees, which included a host of men playing out of position, and Nuno’s team selection for the 2-0 defeat certainly raised plenty of eyebrows.

They were second best all over the pitch and barely threatened the away side at all, barring a decent attempt from winger Jarrod Bowen, with the January window looking more and more like Nuno’s potential lifeline.

According to reports this week, Nuno has urged West Ham chairman David Sullivan and vice-chair Karren Brady to sign a defender, midfielder and forward in the winter (GiveMeSport) as three key positions to address.

Defensively, Max Kilman and Jean-Clair Todibo had a nightmare against Brentford. While Igor Julio has impressed in training lately and could be recalled to the West Ham squad to face Leeds, especially after Konstantinos Mavropanos’ injury, the need for another option is evident.

In midfield, Nuno is believed to want a box-to-box engine room technician who can inject some pace, with internal talks held over a potential move for Chelsea star Andrey Santos among others (GiveMeSport).

Out of all West Ham’s glaring weaknesses, you don’t need an expert to tell you that they’re sorely lacking a reliable number nine who they can rely on as a consistent goalscoring threat.

Niclas Füllkrug’s injury nightmare since joining from Borussia Dortmund threatens to add the German to a long list of failed West Ham striker signings, and it is believed they’re already moving for alternatives.

West Ham have reportedly spoken to Real Madrid about signing Endrick on loan, while journalist Alan Nixon reported earlier this week that the east Londoners are considering ex-Brentford star Ivan Toney on a temporary deal too.

While their goalkeeping department demands the least attention, it is now being reported that West Ham have a chance to sign yet another big-name on loan.

West Ham offered Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen on loan

That man is Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen.

The Catalans captain has barely featured since Hansi Flick took charge in 2024, having suffered various injury problems, but ter Stegen is expected to be back around December — on the eve of the next transfer window.

With Joan Garcia now seizing the number one spot, Barça have told their club legend that he’s free to leave in January for more game time, informing ter Stegen’s camp that they should start looking for a new landing spot.

According to TBR Football and journalist Graeme Bailey, West Ham are one of the clubs who’ve been offered a chance to sign ter Stegen on loan, with intermediaries reaching out over a potential deal.

The 33-year-old is a serial winner. Boasting a Champions League winner’s medal and six La Liga titles from his time at the Camp Nou, ter Stegen would bring a champion’s mentality to Rush Green – something which has been severely lacking in the squad for quite some time.

However, given his £280,000-per-week wages, and the fact West Ham need to prioritise outfield positions, an agreement could well be out of the Hammers’ reach.

The Mets are calling up their No. 4 prospect, minor league pitching star Jonah Tong to start Friday's game vs. the Marlins in New York. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza confirmed the news when speaking to media on Tuesday.

"I think it's all about dominating the minor leagues," Mendoza said. "It's hard to keep him there."

Tong's future in MLB will be determined "one start at a time," Mendoza noted.

"Dominating" is definitely the right word to describe Tong's minor league performances this season. Tong leads the minor leagues with 179 strikeouts. On top of that, the 22-year-old has not allowed a run in 11 2/3 innings since being promoted to Triple A Syracuse on Aug. 11. He previously pitched in 20 games for Double A Binghamton. Across both stops this season, Tong is 10–5 with a 1.43 ERA in 22 starts.

The Mets just placed right-handed pitcher Frank Montas on the 60-day injured list, effectively ending his season, on Monday. Additionally, right-hander Reed Garrett was placed on the 15-day injured list on Monday with right elbow inflammation.

When Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman entered Game 7 of the World Series in the eighth inning on Saturday night, Toronto was up 4-3 over the Dodgers. He needed four outs to seal the championship win for his team—that’s a lot of pressure.

In the ninth inning He delivered a quick strikeout of Enrique Hernández for the first out, then on a 3-2 count, Dodgers second baseman Miguel Rojas hit a 387-foot home run to tie the game. Hoffman then got the final two outs of the inning to give Toronto the opportunity to win in the bottom of the ninth, but he still felt like he failed in his closing position.

The Dodgers went on to win 5-4 in the 11th inning, and Hoffman felt the weight of the loss, telling reporters afterward that he feels like he “cost” the team the World Series title.

“It sucks,” Hoffman said after the game. “Supposed to end differently. Was just one pitch. I cost everybody here a World Series ring. It feels pretty s—ty.”

Obviously the loss can’t be blamed on just one person, there were plenty of late mistakes made by the Blue Jays in Game 7, but Hoffman was understandably emotional after the loss. It’s going to be a tough inning to sit with all offseason.

A sight no Cubs fan wanted to see occurred on Saturday during the club's game against the Nationals at Wrigley Field.

During the bottom of the sixth inning, Cubs All-Star centerfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, facing Nationals reliever PJ Poulin with a 1-1 count, fouled an 89-mph sinker off his right knee. In considerable pain, Crow-Armstrong dropped his bat and hobbled up the third-base line, where he stopped and grabbed his knee as the Cubs trainer hurried out from the dugout.

The speedy outfielder finished the at-bat, which resulted in a walk, then exited the game after the bottom of the sixth inning.

The Cubs announced Crow-Armstrong left the game with a right knee contusion, according to Zoe Grossman of Marquee Sports Network.

Crow-Armstrong, at one point one of the favorites to be named National League MVP, is in the midst of a career year. Even after a second-half swoon, he owns a career-best .786 OPS and is flirting with a 30-homer, 30-stolen base season.

The Cubs, holding strong to the top wild-card spot in the NL, will hope Crow-Armstrong avoided serious injury.

Cal Raleigh and the Seattle Mariners clinched a spot in the MLB postseason on Tuesday night. While it felt inevitable this season, it's only the team's third trip to the postseason in the 21st century so it's an accomplishment worth celebrating.

And yet the Mariners want more. A playoff berth is nice, but Raleigh had a bold message for fans in his postgame interview suggesting that the Mariners have their sights set on a much bigger goal.

After telling the fans that the team loved them Raleigh added, "Might as well go win the whole f—— thing." And the fans rejoiced as the home broadcast apologized for the rough language.

Now that the Mariners have clinched their spot in the playoffs Raleigh, baseball's home run leader, has five games to focus on personal accomplishments as he sits at 58 home runs. It's a Mariners record, but he's got a legitimate shot at hitting 60 home runs, which only six players in the entire history of the sport have done before.

Might as well do that too, right?

And what’s the most catches taken by someone who bagged a pair in the same Test?

Steven Lynch24-Mar-2020Which bowler holds the record for dismissing the highest number of century-makers in Tests? asked K Lokaraj from India

The name at the top of this list is an unsurprising one – Test cricket’s leading wicket-taker Muttiah Muralitharan dismissed 34 batsmen after they got to 100 – but the man in second place is a bit more of a shock: Harbhajan Singh accounted for 28 century-makers in Tests. Jimmy Anderson is currently third, with 26, ahead of the Indian pair of Anil Kumble (25) and Zaheer Khan (24).At the other end of the scale, Glenn McGrath inflicted 104 ducks in Tests, and Murali and Shane Warne 102 apiece.Who was twice stranded on 99 not out in the Sheffield Shield? asked Justin Kelly from Australia

I was rather surprised to discover that there have only been seven cases of a batsman scoring 99 not out in a Sheffield Shield match. The unfortunate man who bagged two – in the space of three matches in 2008-09 – was the Tasmanian allrounder Brett Geeves, who played three white-ball internationals for Australia around this time (and was also called into the Test squad, without winning a cap). Geeves’ first near-miss came against Victoria in Melbourne, and was soon followed by another 99 not out against New South Wales in Newcastle. Both times he was stranded when No. 11 Tim McDonald was dismissed. Poor Geeves never did make a first-class hundred.The others to make 99 not out in a Sheffield Shield innings were Roger Woolley (Tasmania v Western Australia in Devonport in 1978-79), Adam Gilchrist (WA v South Australia in Adelaide in 1995-96), Jimmy Maher (Queensland v WA in Brisbane in 1998-99), Michael Klinger (Victoria v Tasmania in Hobart in 2000-01), and Michael Hussey (WA v South Australia in Adelaide in 2012-13).I spotted that Sachin Tendulkar took part in 72 Tests that ended as draws. I assume this is the record. Who’s next? asked Hasan Narayan from India

Rather surprisingly, perhaps, Sachin Tendulkar’s total of 72 drawn Tests only puts him second on this particular table. On top is Kapil Dev: although he played 69 fewer Tests than Tendulkar (131 to 200), well over half of them – 75 – ended in draws. Two more Indians come next: Sunil Gavaskar (67 draws in 125 Tests) and Dilip Vengsarkar (64 out of 116). Javed Miandad played in 62 drawn Tests, and Allan Border and Rahul Dravid 59 each.Out of the 131 Tests that Kapil Dev was a part of, 75 ended as draws•Getty ImagesWhat’s the most catches taken by someone who bagged a pair in the same Test? asked Kelly Morgan from New Zealand

Two wicketkeepers have taken seven catches in a Test in which they also bagged a pair – South Africa’s Dave Richardson, against Pakistan in Johannesburg in 1994-95, and David Williams for West Indies against England in Port-of-Spain in 1997-98. Ian Healy made eight dismissals, two of them stumpings, to go with a pair for Australia against West Indies in Adelaide in 1992-93 (the match West Indies won by one run). Gary Wilson also took six catches in the match for Ireland against England at Lord’s last year.The record for an outfielder who also bagged a pair is three catches, which has happened seven times now. It was most recently done by the Zimbabwean legspinner Brandon Mavuta, against Bangladesh in Mirpur in 2018-19 (he also managed 0 for 189 with the ball).Following on from the recent question about who has played the most Tests on one ground, I wondered who had played on the most different grounds? asked Michael Clements from England

Sachin Tendulkar does come out on top of this list, helped by having played a record 200 Test matches in all. He played at 42 different grounds, with 11 matches in Kolkata and Mohali, and ten each in Chennai and at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Rahul Dravid played Tests at 36 different venues, and Shivnarine Chanderpaul at 35. VVS Laxman played at 32 different grounds, and Alastair Cook and Jacques Kallis at 30.The former West Indian batsman Faoud Bacchus played 19 Tests at 19 different grounds, a record recently equalled by England’s Adil Rashid.Chanderpaul holds the overall record for having played first-class cricket on the most grounds – 116, one ahead of Tom Graveney and Mushtaq Mohammad. The former England captain MJK Smith played on 114 different grounds, his sometime Test team-mates Jim Parks and Peter Richardson on 113, and Dravid and Tendulkar on 112.Use our
feedback form or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Also, was this the game to send Narine in to bat at No. 4? More on Talking Points

Varun Shetty07-Oct-2020Why did Narine bowl so late?
Sunil Narine came on to bowl in the 12th over for the Kolkata Knight Riders against the Chennai Super Kings, when the partnership between Shane Watson and Ambati Rayudu was on 64 and CSK needed 74 to win in nine overs. Pat Cummins had just finished his fourth.The delay in his bowling could not have been down to a match-up thing: before this game, Watson had made 88 off 83 Narine deliveries, with eight dismissals. Rayudu had scored 41 off 50 off him, with three dismissals. Clearly, they are not players who are very comfortable against Narine.Which suggests that maybe the plan right from the start was to use Narine in the second half of the innings. We know he has supreme numbers against Dhoni, but surely you don’t hinge your entire plan on that one match-up? What else could it have been, though? Perhaps the fact that the Knight Riders like using Cummins up front, which means the young fast bowlers have to bowl at the death alongside Andre Russell. Instead of handing them that responsibility entirely, it’s possible they decided to give it to Narine instead.The use of Varun Chakravarthy later on in the innings also suggests they might have felt there was something about the conditions that was aiding spin bowling. Chakravarthy got them Dhoni’s wicket, which put serious pressure on CSK at the end of their chase and ultimately turned out to be the finishing touch on a fine tactical win, sealed by Narine’s 19th that went for only 10 when 36 were required.Getty ImagesWhy didn’t Jadeja bowl, and why was Karn so effective?
It’s feels out-of-character for CSK to not rely on spinners, and the numbers back up that feeling: out of 170 bowling innings in the IPL, only on 23 occasions – one of them being tonight – have they bowled only four overs of spin or fewer. It’s also strange that none of those four overs tonight came from Ravindra Jadeja, presumably because there was a left-hand KKR batsman in at almost every stage before the slog overs tonight.Legspinner Karn Sharma, meanwhile, did a tight job. He didn’t bowl a single short ball according to ESPNcricinfo’s length data and finished with 4-0-25-2 despite an expensive first over. It was a terrific return for the legspinner who is big in trivia contests because of how many IPL titles he has won (three in three years with Sunrisers, Mumbai and CSK), without ever being a sure-shot pick for any of his teams. Our data suggests he bowled on off stump or wider for the most part against right-hand batsmen today, so he was rarely in the hitting zone for them.More impressively, left-handers had no hitting options against him either: he didn’t concede a single boundary to left-handers and also got two of them out.Getty ImagesWhy did KKR choose to bat?
They never do that. Well, not since May 2015 anyway. The last time was when Gautam Gambhir was still captain and Delhi were still the Daredevils.This season too, they’d bowled on both occasions after winning the toss. Perhaps when you have batsmen like Andre Russell, Eoin Morgan and Dinesh Karthik – who has been a decent finisher himself over time even if he’s not in the best of form at the moment – it is a tempting option to chase.But then the batting hadn’t quite fallen into place for them, in many ways. They were losing early wickets at the top and there hadn’t been consistently memorable performances from the big names mentioned above. They lost chasing in Sharjah in their previous game, so perhaps that factored into the decision to bat today. Or it could just be simply that they were following the tide – captains have started batting first with success in this tournament, and it happened again tonight.Why did Tripathi open, and was this the game to send Narine in at No. 4?
Rahul Tripathi took Narine’s opening spot, and it worked out nicely enough for everyone involved. Tripathi has three fifties in his last four innings as an IPL opener, so it was justified that he was pushed up. There were several perplexed voices around – Ben Stokes among them – when Narine came in ahead of Morgan at No. 4, but Narine did a decent job of it, making 17 off 9. That said, should it have been in this match that Narine lost the opening spot?

Narine before Morgan???

— Ben Stokes (@benstokes38) October 7, 2020

There isn’t elite pace in the CSK line-up, the kind that troubles Narine the batsman a great deal, so in many ways KKR were blunting their own attack. But his 17 off 9 is an innings KKR would accept from him no matter where he’s batting. He, a left-hand batsman, also ended up taking deliveries away from legspinner Karn Sharma, which was a bonus that KKR’s right-handers didn’t make use of later.Why did Russell bowl only at the death?
That is Andre Russell’s designated role this season. He’s bowled 42 of his 60 deliveries after the 16th over so far, and his death-overs economy rate of 8.57 and five wickets show that it’s a plan that’s coming off for KKR.They’ve tried various bowling strategies in the season already, including bowling six and seven bowlers. That depth in bowling is allowing them to bowl Pat Cummins out early on and attack top orders. And, so, it helps to have another seasoned fast bowler in Russell to take over at the death.When he came on today, CSK had been rattled by the loss of Dhoni, but still needed only 13 an over with Sam Curran, Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo available. Russell’s pace, direction and length – decidedly short, for all six balls of his first over – gave them no hitting oppportunity at all and effectively killed the game off as they got only three runs of that over.Russell said later that he had decided to go only cross-seam at the end, because he’d assessed that that was difficult to put away based on the delivery that got him out earlier. Intuition and perception of that kind – and the skills to build a plan around it – could mean we’ll see Russell don this role for a while yet, especially as KKR try to groom two young fast bowlers who they might not want to expose at the death.

Ravi Bopara forms part of favourites’ power-packed batting line-up

Matt Roller26-Aug-2020

Essex

Last year: 4th in South Group, winners
Captain: Simon Harmer
Coach: Anthony McGrath
In a nutshell: Snuck up on the blindside to win their maiden title last year after two wins in their first ten scheduled games, with skipper Harmer the star on Finals Day and Ravi Bopara – in his last season at the club – shining as a finisher despite his frustrations about his role. Bopara will be a big miss this year, but they still have the tools to make hay at Chelmsford.Star: While not an official overseas player thanks to his UK ancestry visa, Cameron Delport brings a wealth of franchise experience at the top of the order. His innings against Surrey – 129 off 49 balls – was the most remarkable of last year’s Blast, and his ability to score quickly and consistently against both spin and pace makes him key.One to watch: Dan Lawrence was due a breakout summer but circumstances have transpired against him and he is yet to make the England debut that seemed inevitable. He is a star in T20, playing in “ultra-aggressive” fashion and striking at 163 against spinners over the last three years.Verdict: Too reliant on batting to repeat last year’s success, but quarters on the cards
Bet365: 8/1

Hampshire

Last year: 7th in South Group
Captain: James Vince/Sam Northeast
Coach: Adi Birrell
In a nutshell: Would have reached knockouts with victory against winless Glamorgan in final group game last year but somehow let Essex sneak through instead. Significantly weakened due to injury and unavailability this season: Liam Dawson is out for the season and Aneurin Donald is unlikely to feature; James Vince’s wife is expecting her second child; Kyle Abbott, Fidel Edwards and Rilee Rossouw are stuck overseas. Discussions are ongoing with Shaheen Afridi about the possibility of staying on after Pakistan’s England tour, who would be a trump card if available.Mason Crane sets off on a celebratory run•Getty ImagesStar: After missing the 2018 tournament through injury, Mason Crane returned to T20 cricket with 11 wickets and an economy rate of 7.03 last season. With the Ageas Bowl generally spin-friendly and Hampshire playing five of their last six group games at home, he will be particularly crucial in the second half of the tournament.One to watch: Scotland opener George Munsey is one of the top short-form batsmen in the associate world, and is a smart pick-up given his ability against spin, against which he strikes at 169 since 2018. Watch out in particular for his signature switch-hits and strong wrists, with clear evidence of his days playing hockey in his youth.Verdict: Missing too many stars to have any real hope of reaching knockouts
Bet365: 10/1

Kent

Last year: 5th in South Group
Captain: Sam Billings
Coach: Matt Walker
In a nutshell: Somehow screwed up qualifications after six wins from first seven fixtures last summer, with three batting implosions in run chases and two abandonments in the final five leaving them a point short of Essex. Likely to be hampered by England call-ups for Billings and Joe Denly, but plenty of talent regardless.Alex Blake of Kent bats•Getty ImagesStar: It has been a frustrating summer for Alex Blake – known affectionately as ‘the Blake-cano’ for his ability to erupt at the back end of an innings – after his decision to sign a white-ball contract has left him twiddling his thumbs. Faded after a bright start last year, but his finishing abilities will still be crucial.One to watch: Left-arm spinner Imran Qayyum was vital last year, plugging away in the middle overs to finish with an economy rate of 7.50 and 12 wickets to his name. In an attack significantly weakened by the absences of Hardus Viljoen, Mohammad Nabi and Adam Milne, he will be the linchpin.Verdict: Attack lacks bite but quarter-finals not beyond them
Bet365: 14/1

Middlesex

Last year: 3rd in South Group, quarter-finalists
Captain: Eoin Morgan/Steven Finn
Coach: Stuart Law
In a nutshell: Reached knockouts for only the second time since their 2008 title last year, but three of the top five run-scorers last year – Dawid Malan, AB de Villiers and Paul Stirling – will play no part and new captain Morgan looks unlikely to feature between England duty and the start of the IPL. Core bowlers remain but homegrown batsmen need to step up.Nathan Sowter lets rip in celebration•Getty ImagesStar: Nathan Sowter, the legspinner who is now England-qualified, had a strong tournament last year with 16 wickets, and will be the primary spin option this season in Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s absence. The main question is whether he can work out a method against left-handers, having leaked 11.10 runs per over against them over the last two seasons.One to watch: Nick Gubbins only played three Blast games last season and has a mediocre T20 record, but has shown his white-ball potential in List A cricket and was joint player of the tournament in Australia’s National Premier T20 Championships over the winter. He should get a run of games in the top three.Verdict: Absence of batting stars will be their undoing
Bet365: 10/1

Surrey

Last year: 8th in South Group
Captain: Jade Dernbach/Gareth Batty
Coach: Vikram Solanki
In a nutshell: Second-bottom last year but only three points off third, and there are reasons to be optimistic despite absence of several England players. Rory Burns and Ben Foakes are useful middle-order rotators, while Sam Curran should be available for at least the first handful of games and Reece Topley – a reserve for the Pakistan T20Is – could come into the picture for the second half. The loan signing of Laurie Evans is a major boost.Liam Plunkett takes a drinks break•Getty ImagesStar: Will Jacks was expected to have a breakout Blast in 2019 – not least after his 25-ball hundred in a pre-season T10 game against Lancashire – but didn’t quite deliver, his 152 strike rate tempered by an average of 20.92. He is highly rated by England, and was named in their 55-man training group at the start of the summer after impressing on the Lions tour to Australia.One to watch: After his unceremonious axing by England, Liam Plunkett has a point to prove. He played only twice in the Blast last year due to injury and struggled in the Bangladesh Premier League, but impressed in the Abu Dhabi T10 and will hope that a strong tournament can be the springboard to further stints on the global short-form circuit.Verdict: In an open group, quarter finals look like a real possibility
Bet365: 11/1

Sussex

Last year: 1st in South Group, quarter-finalists
Captain: Luke Wright
Coach: Jason Gillespie
In a nutshell: Topped the nine-team South Group last year thanks to an all-star bowling attack, and the strongest team on paper by some margin in this season’s six-team version despite Jofra Archer and Chris Jordan’s likely absences. International quality throughout their batting line-up, and Gillespie will be desperate to sign off with some silverware.Delray Rawlins in full flow in the Blast quarter-final•Getty ImagesStar: Tymal Mills will lead the attack and carry much of the wicket-taking burden, with death-bowling duties likely to fall on his shoulders. With experienced spinners Danny Briggs and Will Beer set to operate in tandem in the middle, he will be required as a top-and-tail option. Fixtures come thick and fast, so it may be sensible to rest him a handful of group games.One to watch: Sussex’s likely top six is filled with stars: Wright and Phil Salt will open, with David Wiese and Bopara playing as finishers. But they have a gem at No. 4 in Delray Rawlins, the Bermudan left-hander, who has struck at 155 against spin in his Blast career and has licence to free his arms rather than just ticking over. There is extra pressure to step up after Evans’ loan move to Surrey.Verdict: Anything short of a Finals Day appearance should be considered a failure
Bet365: 9/1

Test your knowledge of the goings on in this season’s competition

Mathew Varghese31-Oct-2020Please refresh the page if the quiz doesn’t load. Stats till the KXIP-RR match on October 30th have been considered.

Smart Stats puts Archer well ahead of others, while Trent Boult was the true leader in terms of wickets

ESPNcricinfo stats team13-Nov-2020Jofra Archer is the clear and undisputed MVP of IPL 2020, according to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats. Archer’s conventional numbers speak for themselves: 20 wickets at 18.25, conceding 6.55 runs per over. The economy rate was the best among the 40 seamers who bowled at least 15 overs in the tournament. Archer’s powerplay economy rate of 4.34 was among the best by any bowler in any T20 tournament. As if that wasn’t enough, he also exceeded expectations with the bat, scoring at a strike rate of 179 and hitting ten sixes – fourth-highest for the Rajasthan Royals – off the 63 balls he faced.ESPNcricinfo LtdHowever, even these incredible numbers don’t do full justice to his performances this season. For that, we need to look at Smart Stats, which looks at every batting and bowling performance through the prism of match context, and the pressure on the batsman and bowler at each delivery when they batted or bowled.Archer’s 20 wickets included ten in the powerplay, and among the batsmen he dismissed were Faf du Plessis and David Warner (twice each), Jonny Bairstow, Quinton de Kock, Shikhar Dhawan and Chris Gayle. Fifteen of his 20 wickets were of batsmen in the top three batting positions; eight times he dismissed batsmen for single-digit scores, and 14 times before they reached 20.Because Smart Wickets takes into account the quality of the batsman and the score at which they were dismissed – getting a good batsman out early before he can inflict any damage fetches higher points – Archer’s 20 wickets were worth nearly 27 Smart Wickets.ESPNcricinfo LtdAlso, Archer was incredibly consistent with his economy as well: only four times in 14 innings did he concede more than seven runs per over. While the overall powerplay economy rate in the tournament was 7.46, Archer went at 4.34. All this with hardly any support at the other end.These factors ensured that Archer’s impact per game was 76.2 points, an incredible 47% higher than the second-placed Rashid Khan, who also took as many wickets as Archer and had a fantastic tournament. His economy rate of 5.37 was the best among all bowlers – without any qualifications – while his Smart Wickets tally was 22.5.There is little to separate the rest of the top five, with Jasprit Bumrah, Rahul Tewatia and Sam Curran taking up those positions. The first specialist batsman in the list is Mayank Agarwal at No. 7, with an impact rating of 42.3. Trent Boult, Mohammed Shami, Jason Holder and Pat Cummins are the others in the top ten.ESPNcricinfo LtdWhile bowlers and allrounders took the top positions in terms of overall impact, the match-wise top impact position went to a batsman: KL Rahul’s outstanding unbeaten 132 off 69 balls against the Royal Challengers Bangalore took pole position, followed by the all-round contribution of Ben Stokes against the Kings XI Punjab, when he scored 50 off 26 deliveries and also took 2 for 32. The highest bowling performance is Lockie Ferguson’s 3 for 15 against the Sunrisers Hyderabad: his three victims were Kane Williamson, Priyam Garg and Manish Pandey – two of them for single-digit scores – and he went at 3.75 per over when the other bowlers in the game had a collective economy rate of 8.39.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe list of bowlers with the highest Smart Wickets deviates from the list of top wicket-takers, because Smart Wickets takes into account the quality of batsman dismissed, his score at the time of dismissal and the match context at that point.Taking all those factors into account, Trent Boult, who is third on the wicket-takers’ list with 25, tops the Smart Wickets tally with an aggregate of 31. He is well clear of the others because of his powerplay haul of 16 wickets, which is six more than the next-best in that phase. Powerplay wickets often tend to impact the course of the game significantly, because most of those wickets are of top-order batsmen dismissed cheaply. Of Boult’s 25 wickets, 14 were of openers – and 18 of batsmen in the top four – while 19 of his dismissals were before the batsmen reached double digits.On the other hand, only seven of Kagiso Rabada’s 30 wickets were of batsmen in the top three positions, while 14 were of batsmen batting at No. 6 or lower. While late wickets can sometimes be crucial when the match is in the balance, often they come about when the result is a formality.In Rabada’s case, a couple of examples illustrate this. Against the Royal Challengers, he took 4 for 24, but three of those wickets – of Washington Sundar, Shivam Dube and Isuru Udana – came in the last 25 balls after the asking rate had touched 20 runs per over, and the Delhi Capitals had already pocketed the match. Four days later, against the Rajasthan Royals, he took 3 for 35 in a match that the Capitals won comfortably by 46 runs. Two of those wickets came in the last over, and all three were taken when the Capitals were already well on top. These wickets add to the conventional wickets tally, but don’t add much to the Smart Wickets count.Among those who bowled at least 25 overs, R Ashwin had the highest ratio of Smart Wickets to conventional wickets: his 13 wickets counted for 20.6 Smart Wickets, a ratio of 1.58. That is because the batsmen he dismissed included de Kock (twice), Kieron Pollard, Jos Buttler, Virat Kohli, Nicholas Pooran and Gayle. Seven of his 13 dismissals happened before the batmen reached double digits.ESPNcricinfo LtdSimilar to Smart Wickets, the Smart Runs leaderboard also varies from the list of top run-getters. Rahul got the Orange Cap, but Shikhar Dhawan is the leader in terms of Smart Runs despite scoring 52 fewer runs. That is because Rahul often played the anchor’s role for the Kings XI Punjab; in several innings, he scored at a conservative pace, with others scoring faster than him in matches that the Kings XI lost. Dhawan’s runs came at a faster rate, and in his big innings, he scored a higher share of the team’s runs. Rahul’s opening partner Agarwal is in the top ten in terms of Smart Runs despite being 14th in terms of his aggregate runs, because of his key contributions – both in terms of runs and strike rate – under high pressure.