توني كروس يشيد بـ فينيسيوس جونيور ويؤكد: لا تترددوا في انتقادي

تحدث الألماني توني كروس، لاعب ريال مدريد السابق عن مستوى الفريق الحالي تحت قيادة تشابي ألونسو، الموسم الحالي 2025/2026.

وخسر ريال مدريد صدارة جدول ترتيب الدوري الإسباني في المباراة الماضية بعد التعادل أمام جيرونا بهدف لكل منهما.

وقال كروس، في تصريحات عبر صحيفة “ماركا” الإسبانية: “لا يجب أن نتحدث دائمًا عن اللاعبين السابقين، فهذا لا يفيد أحدًا، لا أريد أن أسمع أن الناس يفتقدونني، يجب أن يكون التركيز على الحاضر لا على الماضي”.

وأضاف حول أمنية يتمنى حدوثها عن هذا الحديث: “أنا أول من يُفضل فوز ريال مدريد حتى يتوقف هذا الوضع”.

وأكد كروس: “مغادرتي لريال مدريد؟ لقد غادرت بابتسامة ولقب رائع لا يُنسى”.

وأوضح: “ريال مدريد قادر على شق طريقه الخاص بتشكيلته الحالية، عليهم إيجاد طريقة للفوز بتشكيلة متنوعة من اللاعبين”.

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واستطرد: “توتر داخل الفريق؟ ربما تسير بعض الأمور على ما يُرام والبعض الآخر لا، لكنني لم أرَ أحدًا متوترًا بشكل خاص، لديهم لاعبون قادرون على الفوز بكل شيء، الأمر يتعلق بإيجاد طريقة”.

وتابع كروس أيضًا عن عمله كمدرب والاختلافات بين كرة القدم للناشئين والنخبة بالنسبة له، قائلًا: “يلعب الأطفال بشكل أفضل عندما يلعبون بحرية دون خوف من ارتكاب الأخطاء”.

وأردف: “أصبح مدربًا؟ أنا سعيد بمكاني الحالي، ليس لديّ خطة لأقول إنني سأستمر في هذا المجال بعد عشر سنوات، الأمر الأكثر واقعية هو أنني ما زلت هنا”.

وعن فينيسيوس جونيور أتم: “لقد كان من الرائع مشاهدة تطوره، نعم لا يزال يمكنه تحسين بعض الأمور لكن يجب أن نأخذ في الاعتبار الضغط القادم من الخصوم والجماهير، كلاعب هو من الطراز الرفيع، كشخص فهو رائع لقد كان من دواعي سروري أن أتواجد معه داخل الملعب وخارجه”.

Dave Roberts Really Hopes This Is 'Rock Bottom' for Struggling Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers were swept by the Milwaukee Brewers to open the second half of the season. Los Angeles stopped the three-game slide with a win over the Minnesota Twins on Monday night but it was back to the bad habits in a 10-7 loss on Tuesday, the club's seventh defeat in its last 10 games. The suddenly mistake-prone Dodgers made two more errors, each of which cost the team a run—and the latter of which resembled something you'd see from a little league team, and not one of the best teams in the majors.

But it hasn't just been poor fielding that has sunk these Dodgers lately. It's been nearly every facet of the game. Since July 4, a 14 game stretch, the Dodgers have averaged just 3.4 runs per game and its injury-ravaged pitching staff has yielded an average of 5.9 per contest. That's far from a winning recipe.

And manager Dave Roberts sincerely hopes that things don't get much worse.

"It better be rock bottom," Roberts told reporters after Tuesday's loss. "As far as how we've been pitching, how we've been playing defense. I think the offense is kind of starting to tick up, which is good. There's certainly more in there. But I think as far as quality of baseball, it's been a tough watch. It really has."

Perhaps the only fortunate part of this slump for the Dodgers is its timing: a week before MLB's trade deadline, which will give Dodgers brass a chance to perhaps jolt the roster with some imports, ideally in the form of some late-inning relievers to ease the club's overtaxed bullpen.

Other than that, it's on Los Angeles to pull itself out of this free fall. As the Dodgers look to maintain a 3.5-game lead in the National League West, the club's next five series will come against teams above .500.

Chris Sutton slams "odd" moment he spotted from £50k-p/w Leeds star in Man City defeat

Chris Sutton took aim at one Leeds United star after spotting an “odd” moment in the Whites’ dramatic 3-2 defeat at the hands of Manchester City.

Leeds lose late on at Man City

It was very nearly an unforgettable afternoon for Leeds, who came from behind to level things up at 2-2 in the second-half, courtesy of Lukas Nmecha’s reactions to rebound from his own penalty.

As so many have experienced at the Etihad over the years, however, it simply wasn’t to be for Daniel Farke’s men. The Citizens’ simply had too much quality and, for a split second, Phil Foden had too much time. The England international fired home his second goal of the day in the 91st minute to break Leeds’ hearts.

Upon reflection, Farke will be wishing that he started with Dominic Calvert-Lewin rather than setting up to frustrate Man City. It took just 59 seconds for Foden to give the hosts the lead, before Josko Gvardiol’s goal looked to be the beginning of a thrashing.

Farke soon changed things at the break, though, and Calvert-Lewin’s effort from the bench set the tone for Nmecha to then go and convert the rebound of his own spotkick.

The Yorkshire side certainly deserved at least a point, but simply felt the harsh reality of the Premier League in its full extent instead. From here, they must pick themselves up and go again against Chelsea at Elland Road.

Things won’t be getting any easier for a Leeds side who could be three points adrift of safety if other results go against them this weekend.

Chris Sutton, covering the game for BBC Sport, was particularly critical of Pascal Struijk in the first-half after spotting an “odd” moment from the Leeds defender.

Sutton slams "odd" Pascal Struijk moment

Taking aim, Sutton slammed Struijk for how he was “content” with entering the break at 2-0 down, wasting time at the end of the first-half. The defender’s aim was damage control and, to his credit, it worked in his favour as Leeds soon came from behind.

The moment, which sparked Sutton’s frustration, may well have helped Leeds stay in the game. It was an absolute onslaught from Man City in the first period and Farke desperately needed to get his side back into the game without letting the hosts out of sight. And the £50,000-a-week defender was well aware of that.

The visitors can take a lot of positives, despite their defeat. It’s very rare that sides come to the Etihad, find themselves 2-0 down and don’t find themselves on the end of a battering. Leeds, however, showed plenty of fight.

Leeds eyeing move for 4-3-3 Farke successor who has admirers at Elland Road

West Ham now send scouts to watch the "best" striker in the Championship

West Ham United sent one of their top scouts to watch Josh Sargent in action for Norwich City against Birmingham City in the Championship this weekend.

The Hammers have commenced their search for a striker amid rumours that Niclas Fullkrug is likely to leave the club in the January transfer window. The towering German arrived fresh from an impressive Euro 2024 not so long ago, but has since scored just three goals for West Ham in what has been an incredibly disappointing move.

The forward’s agent recently added fuel to the fire by saying when asked about a potential exit for his client: “This always has to happen in cooperation with the club, but I believe it can make sense to change something there.”

As much as he’s struggled, however, West Ham will still need to replace Fullkrug if he departs in January. His exit would leave them with just one out-and-out striker in Callum Wilson and it’s no secret that he’s had his injury struggles throughout his career.

If Nuno Espirito Santo is to stand any chance of keeping the Hammers afloat in the Premier League, then the club must simply back him in the January transfer window. To that end, the likes of Adama Traore have already been mentioned as early winter targets and his arrival would certainly be a good start this winter.

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Meanwhile, alongside Traore, West Ham have also set their sights on a key upgrade on Fullkrug, with their scouts sent to watch Norwich star Sargent this weekend.

West Ham send scouts to watch Josh Sargent

As reported by Football Insider, West Ham sent officials to watch Sargent against Birmingham City this weekend. The American has been the only bright spark in a disastrous few months for Norwich, scoring six goals in all competitions ahead of this weekend’s fixtures, and has more than done enough to earn a Premier League move.

Former Norwich boss Liam Manning was full of praise for the forward even as his short spell turned into a nightmare. He told reporters: “He’s a constant handful. I think he’s so intelligent with the positions he takes up, and he’s so sharp over the first metres. He’s the best nine at the level for me. We’re delighted to have him here, long may that continue.”

It’s hard to argue with Manning’s verdict, either. When fit, there’s not many better than sargent in England’s second tier and questions are gradually beginning to be asked about his potential ability to take that form into the Premier League.

West Ham need a consistent striker, Sargent has earned a big move in the face of Norwich’s struggles, and the January transfer window could now present an interesting saga as a result.

Ex-club chief shares why West Ham must avoid Adama Traore after working with him

Celtic hold talks to hire "talented" manager who's like a young O'Neill

Martin O’Neill has steadied the ship as interim Celtic manager, but for how much longer will he be at the helm?

The 73-year-old has led the Hoops into the League Cup Final, ousting Rangers 3-1 at Hampden, while also enjoying back-to-back 4-0 victories in the Premiership, most recently hammering Kilmarnock 4-0 on Sunday.

The Northern Irishman returned to Glasgow 20 years after departing, having won three Premiership titles, two Scottish Cups and the League Cup during his first stint in charge, also leading the Hoops to the UEFA Cup Final in 2003, beaten by José Mourinho’s Porto in Seville.

When he was appointed in 2000, this was seen as a bit of a risk, considering O’Neill had little top-level experience at the time, achieving promotions with Wycombe Wanderers and Leicester City, before winning two EFL Cups in charge of the Foxes.

So, could the Celtic board return to the English Football League for their next appointment, a quarter of a century on from O’Neill’s arrival at Parkhead?

Latest on Celtic's manager search

From the moment the dust settled following Brendan Rodgers’ shock resignation as Celtic manager on 27 October, Kieran McKenna has been among the front-runners for the job.

A report last week suggested he had emerged as the No.1 target to fill the vacancy, with speculation suggesting that he does have an affiliation to Celtic.

However, it was also noted that getting McKenna out of Ipswich will be no easy take, considering he is under contract at Portman Road until 2028, and the Tractor Boys, currently seventh in the EFL Championship, will not allow their most prized asset to leave without a fight.

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Thus, as they search for alternatives, a report by the Daily Record claims that Celtic have held internal discussions at boardroom level about the possibility of appointing Brian Barry-Murphy – with interest in McKenna said to have ‘waned’.

The report indicates that Celtic chiefs are currently conducting interviews, with a new figure potentially in line to be in place for the Premiership clash away to St Mirren on Saturday, November 22.

As for Barry-Murphy, his father Jimmy was a Gaelic footballer and hurler, winning multiple major titles, thereby considered to be among the most legendary figures in the history of all Gaelic games.

Now, Brian is making a name for himself as a football coach across the Irish Sea, so could he soon swap South Wales for Glasgow?

What the next O'Neill would bring to Celtic

Following the Bluebirds’ relegation last season, thereby finding themselves outside England’s top two tiers for the first time since 2003, Barry-Murphy was appointed Cardiff City manager in the summer.

Well, up until very recently, Cardiff had been top of EFL League One, before back-to-back away defeats at Blackpool and Bolton have seen them sink down to fourth.

Nevertheless, they have reached the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, set to face Chelsea next month, and their league statistics this season are impressive.

Points

26

4th

Goals scored

22

3rd

Goals against

14

2nd

Big chances

41

1st

Big chances missed

30

1st

Possession

62.1%

1st

Accurate passes

407.5

1st

Shots per 90

14.4

2nd

Shots on target pet 90

4.9

2nd

Clean sheets

6

2nd

As the table documents, Cardiff lead the division when it comes to big chances missed, suggesting they’re playing well but have not earned as many points as they may deserve.

Meantime, the Bluebirds are in the top two for goals against and shots, while ranked first in the division for possession and accurate passes, evidence of Barry-Murphy’s style of play.

Before taking the Cardiff job, the Irishman had been in charge of Manchester City’s Elite Development Squad, overseeing plenty of success with the Sky Blues, which is very much where he honed his craft and playing philosophy.

Now, his work in South Wales is earning rave reviews, labelled a “very talented coach”, while Benedict Ferraby of EFL World has praised his ‘impressive start’ to life in the Bluebirds’ dugout as well as his ‘exciting’ style of play.

Of course, considering he has only ever managed Rochdale, Man City’s youth teams and now Cardiff for just 22 matches, appointing Barry-Murphy would be a risk, but one reminiscent of the hiring of O’Neill, a similar age at the time, back in 2000.

With no obvious candidate for the job, and Rodgers’ resignation coming out of nowhere, the Celtic board are targeting a younger ‘project’ manager.

Well, while McKenna appears perfectly suited to this role, securing his signature may not prove ascertainable, but Barry-Murphy could well be the ideal alternative.

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'You just can't script that' – SA breathe easy after a 'Camel classic' in Centurion

Eight wickets down, 32 runs still to get, and a WTC final spot at stake; there were more than a few jangling nerves at SuperSport Park

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Rabada and Jansen were already doing that. Rabada hit the second and eighth balls he faced for four, Jansen was five off six at the break and together, they had put on 17 runs. They had started to steady a collapse that started when Bavuma walked despite not inside-edging Mohammed Abbas and resulted in four wickets falling in the space of 12 balls. Bavuma retreated to the bathroom but Jansen and Rabada had to keep things going on, and they settled on their plan early.”I came in and I said to him, I’m going to look to be positive,” Rabada said. “Without any hesitation, he (Jansen) said, ‘okay.’ And he had his own game plan. I didn’t tell him how to bat. His main thing was one ball at a time, play it on his merit and that’s what he did. He was a bit more orthodox. I was a bit more unorthodox.”Post-lunch, Rabada took the first risk, when he drove away from his body and edged Abbas but the chance fell short. “I was going after the drive and it felt like I could get nicked off, and I did,” he said. “And it bounced short. So I’m thankful for that.”It didn’t stop him from playing his shots. In the next over Naseem Shah offered it short and wide, Rabada got up on his toes and cracked the shot over cover, just as he planned to. “I said to myself, ‘just give me a cut, give me a cut, I’m setting up for the cut’,” Rabada said “And then he gave me a cut. I set it up nicely and connected it.”For Conrad, who sat stony-faced on the dressing room balcony, “there were little visions of Brian Charles (Lara) at times,” as he watched Rabada bat. Bavuma was still in the bathroom. He only dared to emerge an over later, when Jansen had crisply hit Abbas through cover and South Africa needed 15 runs. “I could hear the guys clapping and Kyle Verreynne shouting. The way he was shouting, it was positive shouts, so I thought, ‘okay, let me come show my face’,” Bavuma said.Still, Rababa and Jansen were not so sure. They knew Pakistan’s bowling quality, they had seen their top and middle order blown away and they understood that they were the last pair South Africa could rely on. “I just kept thinking, I’m not going to leave it to Patto (Dane Paterson),” Rabada said. “Not that I don’t have any faith in him but sometimes there’s two voices in your head: the one voice says, you’re not going to do this. And the other one has to overpower it.”The first ball Rabada faced off Aamer Jamal was a no-ball and he took a single off it. Thirteen needed. He had to wait until the penultimate ball of the over to face again, after Jansen ducked, watched one down leg, defended and then cut him for one. Rabada smoked the final ball of the over back over Jamal’s head and then creamed the last one through the covers to leave South Africa one hit away. But it was only after he got Jansen back on strike and South Africa needed two to win that Rabada believed South Africa had it.The South Africa players did a lap of honour after sealing a spot in the WTC final•Gallo Images”Before that, I just kept thinking, ‘don’t drop the ball, just keep with your processes’. The main thing I was thinking was, continue to stay positive,” he said. “If I looked to get into my shell, and I got out trying to do that, then I would have been more upset. If I got out being positive, I would have accepted that.”Bavuma may not have. By then, he was fully invested in Rabada getting the runs. “How he did it. I couldn’t care, to be honest,” Bavuma joked. “It’s weird with him. You never know what type of KG is going to come out with the bat: it’s the one who wants to play all correct, and then there’s the other guy who played the way that he did today.”In the end, Rabada finished with the third-highest score by a No.10 in a successful chase and called it “without a doubt” the best Test innings of his career. “With a lot of pressure on, it’s the one innings that I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”He won’t be the only one. Bavuma emerged from his self-imposed exile to see Rabada bat and then saw him down at the stairs and “jumped on him with joy”, so much so that he “found myself to be taken aback by the emotion.” In the moment Conrad was left speechless. “I don’t think we can put into words what that was. You can’t script that,” he said. And for the 3,600 people who were in the ground and the many, many others watching on television screens, it sent a message about what to do when your team is under pressure. As Bavuma and Conrad and Rabada and Jansen did: be yourself.

Jacob Duffy makes big impact at small Eden Park

The fast bowler has fronted up to bowl the difficult overs and emerged as the leader of the current NZ pace pack

Deivarayan Muthu08-Nov-2025Fast bowler Jacob Duffy had figures of 8-1-40-3 across the first two T20Is against West Indies in Auckland – a big plus for New Zealand on the small straight boundaries at Eden Park.Opener Brandon King tried to access the small boundary over mid-off in the first over of West Indies’ chase of 208 in the second T20I, but Duffy denied him with an outswinger that wasn’t full enough and found his outside edge. When Shai Hope, the half-centurion from the first T20I, attempted the same, Duffy got the ball to move away further and beat the outside edge.Duffy’s first nine balls in the powerplay were all dots after which a fumble in the infield allowed a single. In his third over in the powerplay, Duffy almost had Alick Athanaze chop an inswinger pitched on an in-between length back onto his stumps.Nothing full. Nothing wide. Swing both ways. And the deliveries that went straight on were so tight that batters couldn’t take liberties against them.On most days, Duffy’s new-ball spell might have been enough for New Zealand to defend 207. But on Thursday, West Indies’ power-hitters mounted a late charge. Duffy was needed again at the death.When West Indies required 30 off 12 balls, Duffy conceded back-to-back boundaries to Rovman Powell in dewy conditions at the start of the 19th over. But he managed to regroup and conceded just four runs off the last four balls. A bumper flew past Matthew Forde’s head while a yorker was squirted to short fine leg for a single.Related

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While operating with the new ball is Duffy’s stronger suit, he can also do a job at the death. With a number of New Zealand’s first-choice fast bowlers on the sidelines, including Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson, Duffy displayed skill and composure to spearhead a young and inexperienced attack. Since April 2024, Duffy has been New Zealand highest wicket-taker, with 36 strikes, and second-most economical bowler for a minimum of 200 balls bowled in the format. Mitchell Santner, the most economical New Zealand bowler during this period and the captain, was impressed.”Duff has been excellent in the last two years,” Santner said after the first T20I against West Indies. “He has taken every opportunity that has gone his way and he’s probably the leader of the pack at the moment, especially in T20 and even in white-ball with Matt Henry as well. I mean three in the powerplay is never a tough gig but he made it look easy. You come up against very strong power-hitters – Rovman Powell, [Romario] Shepherd and [Jason] Holder…”Mitchell Santner: “Duff has been excellent in the last two years”•AFP/Getty ImagesDuffy, 31, made his international debut in December 2020 in a T20I against Pakistan, also at Eden Park, eight years after his maiden T20 appearance for Otago under Brendon McCullum. More recently in August this year, he made his Test debut in Zimbabwe, more than 13 years after his first first-class match for Otago. Duffy reckons his long and hard toil in domestic cricket has steeled him for the challenges of international cricket.”I’ve played a lot of cricket, albeit not at international level but domestically,” Duffy said. “So, that definitely helps. It’s the same game but just that you’re playing against better players, so that is good. I think we all get along very well as a bowling unit and at the same time, we’ve got very different skillsets.”Whenever you look at me, KJ [Kyle Jamieson], Foulkesy [Zak Foulkes] and Smudge [Nathan Smith] on the sidelines, we all do quite different things and we help each other out in our own way. But, at the end of the day, the boys are going to put their own game plan into place but, no, we are all feeding off each other and we’re all helping each other out.”The collective effort from New Zealand’s bowlers helped defend 207, despite West Indies scoring 87 in the last five overs. Duffy stood out, fronting up to bowl the difficult overs in the powerplay and death. It’s not for nothing he was the No.1-ranked T20I bowler until recently. He is strengthening his case for next year’s T20 World Cup – with or without some of the senior quicks.

'I'm impressed' – Harry Kane says 'fearless' Vincent Kompany is helping Bayern Munich stars 'understand' football

Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane has heaped praise on head coach Vincent Kompany ahead of their Champions League clash against Arsenal on Wednesday. The English lynchpin is highly impressed with Kompany's coaching standards and has highlighted that the Belgian's "fearless" approach is assisting the players to develop a better understanding of the game.

  • A 'top of the table' continental clash

    After humbling Freiburg 6-2 in the Bundesliga last Saturday, Kompany's Bayern are all set to face Premier League heavyweights Arsenal in their fifth Champions League tie on Wednesday evening. The Bavarians have been in sensational form this season, losing just once across all competitions, while maintaining a 15-game winning record at the start of the season, a first for any European club. As they travel to the Emirates Stadium, they will be eager to conjure some magic to emerge as a strong obstacle against Mikel Arteta's army.

    The Gunners have not conceded a goal in the Champions League so far and sit level on points and goal difference with the German giants at the top of the Champions League table. However, Kane believes his side are in the right "mindset" heading into the clash with his former north London derby rivals thanks to the impressive methods of their Belgian coach.

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    Kane impressed with Kompany's approach

    The former Tottenham striker said at a press conference: "The way we play, the way we train, the way he treats the team, the way he goes forward, the way you should behave. These are qualities. He is fearless. We press, stand high, that's the mindset. He gives everyone a lot of self-confidence. Not only me, but also others have improved under him, understand the game better now. I'm impressed." 

    In the 2025-26 season, Arteta and his coaching staff have focused on utilising the set-pieces by turning them into a dangerous goal-scoring threat. As of late October, they had already scored 11 goals from such movements. "Football is developing. Arsenal are very strong at set-pieces. As always, we have prepared, looked at where they are strong and how we can prevent that. We simply have to avoid set pieces. If they do surrender, we have to defend well," opined the Englishman.

  • Kompany claims facing Arsenal is the hardest task

    While Arsenal have not won much silverware in recent times, their prosperity under Arteta's mentorship has already stunned opposition teams. For Kompany, Arsenal are a hard nut to crack. He said: "It's probably the hardest task at the moment to play against Arsenal. But we're happy about that, that's why we're here." 

    While the Belgian tactician might be happy to arrive at the Emirates as the table toppers, they are a side who have struggled in set-pieces, and will take on a side adept at such actions. He claimed: "We haven't shown our normal strength in the last few games. That doesn't mean that you're not good, but you have to do better in these situations now. We have analysed this. I don't like to think too much about defence, but how we can play our game. It will be difficult to score our goals. We have to be better defensively at set-pieces, just as we are offensively. At some point, the defenders simply have to head the thing away."

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    Kane's record against Arsenal

    Before shifting base to Munich, Kane was a key player at Tottenham. To date, he has faced the Gunners 21 times, emerging victorious on eight occasions, losing seven, and drawing the remaining six. He notably has 15 goals against Arteta's side and will teammates like Lennart Karl and Michael Olise he will aim to add to that tally on Wednesday.

    "I've won and scored many goals here. Hopefully [on Wednesday] too," he said. "Arsenal has more experience than when we last met. They're harder to break down defensively now. They've improved. This will be a good test for us."

Stats – Tim David shatters T20I records with 37-ball ton

Australia have now chased 200-plus targets most number of times in T20Is

Sampath Bandarupalli26-Jul-20256 Instances of Australia successfully chasing down a target of 200 and more in T20Is, the most by any team in the format. India and South Africa have five successful chases of 200-plus targets.West Indies have now lost six times while defending a 200-plus target, which is a T20I record. They went ahead of South Africa, who have failed to defend a target of 200-plus runs on five occasions.37 Number of balls Tim David needed to bring up his century in the third T20I against West Indies, the fastest in T20Is for Australia, bettering Josh Inglis’ 43-ball ton against Scotland last year.David’s fifty came in only 16 balls, which is also an Australian record. The previous fastest was off 17 balls, by Marcus Stoinis against Sri Lanka in 2022 and Travis Head against Scotland in 2024.ESPNcricinfo Ltd11 Number of sixes David struck during his unbeaten 37-ball 102. Only Aaron Finch hit more sixes in a T20I innings for Australia – 14 against England during his 156 in 2013 at Southampton. David had hit ten sixes in his first 26 balls; only three other batters in all T20s have hit ten or more in their first 26 balls.128* Partnership between David and Mitchell Owen for the fifth wicket during the chase. It is the highest stand for Australia for the fifth or a lower wicket in men’s T20Is. It is also the highest by any pair for the fifth or a lower wicket in a T20I chase.Related

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David smashes fastest T20I century for Australia to make it 3-0

More than a finisher: David soars to new heights

1 David also became the first Australian batter to score a hundred while batting at No. 5 or lower. All the previous 11 hundreds for Australia in men’s T20Is have come while batting in the top four.He is only the second batter to score a hundred in a successful chase while batting at No. 5 or lower, after Mark Chapman, who made 104* against Pakistan in 2023.ESPNcricinfo Ltd16.1 Overs that Australia needed to complete the 215-run chase against West Indies. It is the fourth-fastest 200-plus target chase in terms of overs taken in T20Is. All three quicker chases than Australia have come in 2025 only.146 Numbers of runs Australia scored in the middle overs (7-16) during the chase, the most they have scored in that phase in T20Is. It is also the sixth-most runs scored by any team in the middle overs in men’s T20Is. David alone scored 94 of those 146 runs, the third-most by any batter in a men’s T20I. (where ball-by-ball data is available)1 Australia registered their maiden T20I series win in West Indies by going 3-0 up in the five-match series. Australia previously played three T20I series in the Caribbean and won only two of the eight matches across those series.2 Number of players with centuries in all three formats in international cricket for West Indies. Shai Hope joined Chris Gayle in the elite list, following his maiden T20I ton on Friday against Australia.102* Hope’s score against Australia on Friday. He is the first wicketkeeper-captain to score a hundred in T20Is. Scott Edwards’ 99 against Oman in 2024 was the previous highest score by a keeper-captain.

West Indies drop Brathwaite for India Tests; Chanderpaul, Athanaze recalled

Khary Pierre, the left-arm spinner who is yet to play in Tests, has also been called up

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Sep-2025West Indies have dropped former captain Kraigg Brathwaite from their 15-member squad for the two-Test series in India beginning on October 2, while Alick Athanaze and Tagenarine Chanderpaul have been recalled with an emphasis on players well equipped to play spin.Brathwaite, a veteran of 100 Test caps, lost his place in the XI in the final Test against Australia earlier this year, a series which West Indies lost 0-3 and resulted in an emergency meeting which involved the likes of Clive Lloyd and Brian Lara. Also missing from the squad against Australia are Keacy Carty, Johann Layne and Mikyle Louis.Khary Pierre, the left-arm spinner who is yet to play in Tests, has been called up too. Pierre is the second specialist spinner in the squad alongside vice-captain Jomel Warrican, and has been selected after taking 41 wickets at an average of 13.56 in the West Indies championship. Gudakesh Motie, meanwhile, has been rested “given the demands of the upcoming limited-overs schedule,” according to a CWI release.”The return of Tagenarine Chanderpaul is to help transform our fortunes at the top of the order given the recent struggles, with Alick Athanaze being added for his strengths and qualities against spin bowling,” head coach Daren Sammy said in a statement. “Khary is included for the first time as our second spinner in what we expect to be helpful conditions.”ESPNcricinfo LtdAthanaze’s last Test appearance was in the subcontinent against Pakistan in January. Chanderpaul, who last played a Test in January 2024 on the tour of Australia, is likely to partner John Campbell at the top. Kevlon Anderson, who has a first-class average of 42.05, keeps his place in the squad. The other batters are the captain Roston Chase, Justin Greaves, Shai Hope, Tevin Imlach and Brandon King.The spin contingent will be led by Warrican, Pierre, and Chase. The seamers are Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Anderson Phillip and Jayden Seales.West Indies are set to arrive in Ahmedabad on September 24. Only four players – Chase, Hope, Alzarri and Warrican – were part of the West Indies squad that last toured India in 2018-19. The first Test is set to be played in Ahmedabad and the second one in Delhi from October 10.West Indies have a busy season ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup in February-March. Later this month, they play Nepal in Sharjah for three T20Is, then play two Tests in India before flying to Bangladesh for a multi-format white-ball tour in October-November. They close out the year with an all-format tour of New Zealand from November 5 to December 22 comprising five T20Is, three ODIs and three Tests.West Indies Test squad for India series
Roston Chase (capt), Jomel Warrican (vice-capt), Kevlon Anderson, Alick Athanaze, John Campbell, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Justin Greaves, Shai Hope, Tevin Imlach, Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Brandon King, Anderson Phillip, Khary Pierre, Jayden Seales.

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