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The PCB has asked Sri Lanka Cricket “for their views” on the prospect of playing their series later this year in Pakistan instead of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka were the last team to play international cricket in Pakistan – their tour in March 2009 was cut short after terrorists attacked their team bus as it was on the way to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore for the second Test.That attack, on the back of growing security concerns over the previous two years, brought to an end international cricket in the country, taking away the 2011 World Cup in the process.The two sides are due to play a full Test and limited-overs series in October, scheduled in the FTP officially as a ‘home’ series for Pakistan. Until now the series was due to take place in Sri Lanka, but after a meeting between PCB chairman Ijaz Butt and Pakistan’s interior minister Rehman Malik on Thursday, the government is keen on bringing international cricket back to the country.”The government wants this [series to be held in Pakistan],” a senior PCB official told ESPNcricinfo. “We have asked SLC again to let us have their views on the issue.”The prospect of the series actually taking place in Pakistan remains a distant one. So far the government has only passed on verbal instructions to the PCB, who in turn have written to SLC. As of Saturday, when a SLC official was asked about the development or whether the board had been approached, he told ESPNcricinfo: “Not to my knowledge.”Most of Pakistan’s major cities – where such a series is likely to be played – have been targeted fairly recently by terrorist attacks, within the last year in the cases of Lahore and Karachi. At the beginning of this month Osama bin Laden was killed in an operation by US forces in Abbottabad, a town not far from the country’s capital Islamabad.Pakistan have played their ‘home’ series since the Lahore attacks at a number of venues; a series against South Africa was arranged in the UAE. In 2009-10, they broke up a full tour of New Zealand by playing the ODIs in Abu Dhabi and the Tests in New Zealand itself. They used England as a venue for two ‘home’ Tests against Australia last summer. Pakistan is also, incidentally, in talks with SLC over staging their series with England over the turn of the year in Sri Lanka.Afghanistan will actually become the first international team to play in Pakistan next week when they take on Pakistan ‘A’ in three 50-over games. Interestingly enough, one of the games was arranged for Abbottabad, but after the meeting between Butt and Malik the venue was switched to Islamabad.

Kevin Pietersen has undergone routine surgery to repair the hernia that led to his early departure from England’s World Cup campaign

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Mar-2011

Kevin Pietersen has undergone routine surgery to repair the hernia that led to his early departure from England’s World Cup campaign, but is expected to be ready for the Sri Lanka Test series which gets underway in late May. Following a period of recuperation, Pietersen will begin a rehabilitation programme with his county Surrey, in conjunction with the England team medical staff.”Kevin underwent a successful, routine operation with a hernia and an area of weaknesses repaired on the left side while a small hernia was identified and repaired on the right side,” said ECB Chief Medical Officer, Dr Nick Peirce.”Kevin will now undergo a relatively brief period of rest before beginning a rehabilitation programme with Surrey CCC under the guidance of the England team medical staff. His return to first-class cricket will be determined once he commences his rehabilitation programme, but we expect him to be fully fit in time for England’s first summer Test starting May 26.”Pietersen’s departure from the England squad followed a crucial eight-over bowling spell in the team’s six-run victory over South Africa at Chennai last week, but the circumstances were frowned upon by England’s coach, Andy Flower, who had hoped such a key player would take a few painkillers and “bite the bullet” to get through the remainder of the tournament.Nevertheless, Flower accepted that the medical report justified the decision to send him home. “Once Kevin’s hernia injury was identified we knew he would require an operation and the surgeon’s findings further underline the seriousness of the injury,” he said. “We’re pleased Kevin has undergone a successful surgery and can shortly begin his rehabilitation programme with a view to rejoining the England team in time for our first Test match of the summer against Sri Lanka.”

An update has emerged on Newcastle United and their interest in Arsenal’s Eddie Nketiah ahead of the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

According to The Mirror, the Magpies are one of a number of clubs hoping to snap him up on a free transfer at the end of the season.

Eddie Howe is plotting a swoop for the striker but will need to fight off interest from Brighton, West Ham and Crystal Palace, among others.

The striker is valued at £9m by Transfermarkt at present.

Huge upgrade on Chris Wood

PIF must ensure that they can work with Howe to get this deal over the line as Nketiah would be a huge upgrade on Wood at the top end of the pitch.

Newcastle brought the New Zealand international in from Burnley during the January transfer window and he has struggled to live up to his £25m value.

Since arriving on Tyneside, he has found the back of the net twice in 16 appearances – once from open play – for the Magpies. He has scored five goals in 33 games for the Clarets and the Toon combined this term – missing nine ‘big chances’ and amassing 8.22 Expected Goals along the way.

Nketiah, meanwhile, has started five Premier League matches for the Gunners and produced four goals and one assist from 4.26 xG. This shows that he is finishing off the chances he is being provided with instead of wasting them, as Wood has been doing throughout the season.

Former Magpies forward Michael Owen previously lavished praise on the Englishman, saying: “He’s very good. He’s got a real smell for it, hasn’t he? He knows where the ball’s going to drop. I like his movement. I like his hunger to score goals. With his attitude, the way he plays, he’s just going to be a goal machine all his career.”

He also excelled in the EFL Cup as he scored five times in four starts in the competition earlier in the season for the Gunners. This means that he has scored nine goals in nine starts for Arsenal in the League Cup and Premier League combined, living up to Owen’s comments on his goalscoring prowess.

Nketiah is also eight years younger than Wood and this means that he has the potential to improve and develop over time. He is already proving himself to be a better striker than the former Burnley man, so imagine how good he can be after a couple of seasons working with Howe.

The £17k-per-week England U21 international would be a major upgrade on the 30-year-old dud and Newcastle must work hard to get this deal done.

AND in other news, “Sources have confirmed”: Edwards drops huge Newcastle claim that’ll excite supporters…

Newcastle United have reportedly opened talks with Rangers over the potential signing of youngster Alex Lowry this summer.

According to Football Insider, the Magpies have held talks over signing the 18-year-old attacking midfielder, with current employers Rangers keen to extend the exciting prospect’s deal.

The Scotsman is currently contracted to the Scottish Premiership champions until 2024 and it is understood that Lowry has recently been offered an improved deal at £5,000 per week.

As the North East club prepare for their first summer transfer window under the ownership of PIF, it is expected that the Tyneside outfit are to spend big in an attempt to completely reform the look of the current squad.

However, the future definitely has to be considered and, in Lowry, the Toon Army could save millions on a prospect that’s rapidly gathering attention.

Imagine him & Bruno

Granted, given Lowry’s lack of game time in the Rangers first team the 18-year-old would be initially included in Newcastle’s U23s.

The attacking midfielder made his Premiership debut in January, playing the entire 90 minutes in a 1-0 win at home to Livingston whilst also scoring on his debut against Dumbarton in the Scottish Challenge Cup.

Moreover, Lowry has also netted in the 4-0 Scottish Cup victory against Stirling Albion and was an unused substitute in the 2-1 extra-time victory against fierce rivals Celtic that booked Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side’s place in the final.

As for where the youngster would fit in on Tyneside, Newcastle’s U23s have had a decent campaign, with the young Geordies sat seventh in the second division of Premier League 2 and would undoubtedly be able to accommodate a player with an abundance of potential.

Lowry’s former academy coach Graeme Murty claimed that the 18-year-old is “unlike any other player” at Rangers and has “a remarkable degree of self-confidence.”

When it comes to the first-team picture, Eddie Howe’s attacking midfield options are somewhat limited.

Just Joelinton and Miguel Almiron are the Magpies’ only recognised attacking midfielders, with the duo scoring a combined tally of just three goals this term; there’s certainly room for improvement in that area.

However, January signing Bruno Guimaraes has already proved to be a nuisance in the box, scoring three goals already for the Toon Army.

With the box-to-box ability of the Brazilian alongside Lowry’s forward-thinking play, Newcastle could one day unearth an electric partnership in the middle of the park.

AND in other news: Howe and PIF are now heading for their first big NUFC error, it would be a disaster

Ruben Loftus-Cheek wants to fight for his place at Chelsea amid interest from Everton and a number of other clubs, The Daily Mail’s Adrian Kajumba reports.

The lowdown

Loftus-Cheek scored his first Chelsea goal in three years on Sunday as the Blues beat Crystal Palace 2-0 at Wembley to secure a place in the FA Cup final.

The central midfielder came off the bench to replace an injured Mateo Kovacic, making his 32nd appearance of the season. He’s started 13 games across all competitions, playing just over 1,700 minutes in total.

Transfermarkt value the 25-year-old, who has two years left on his £150,000-per-week contract, at £18million.

BT Sport pundit Rio Ferdinand has described Loftus-Cheek as a ‘fantastic specimen’ and likened him to ‘Yaya Toure’ when he ‘gets in full pelt’.

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The latest

Kajumba writes that Loftus-Cheek hopes to remain at Stamford Bridge and ‘kick on’ after regaining confidence.

Clubs such as Everton, along with West Ham and Jose Mourinho’s Roma, have been keeping tabs on the Englishman.

Frank Lampard and director of football Kevin Thelwell have weighed up making a move in the summer transfer window and offering him the chance to play more regular football.

The verdict

All hope is not lost yet for Everton. This is Loftus-Cheek’s plan for the moment, but that could change before the start of next season. He could yet be pushed further down the pecking order, with Conor Gallagher due to return from a successful loan spell at Palace.

Gallagher has notched an impressive eight goals and five assists and also earned a call-up to the England squad last month. If Loftus-Cheek faces even more competition, then perhaps his stance on moving away will change.

Plus, Lampard will surely be well-placed to capitalise if Chelsea do look to arrange a transfer. The 43-year-old is the club’s record goalscorer and tapped into that relationship to sign Mason Mount and Fikayo Tomori on loan when he was manager at Derby County.

In other news, Paul Brown has dropped a worrying EFC exit claim. 

Betting in cricket and other sports should be legalised in India, a Delhi court has said

Cricinfo staff01-Sep-2010

Betting in cricket and other sports should be legalised in India, a Delhi court has said, pointing out that the police have failed to curb illegal betting in the country. Legalising betting, the court said, would help the government keep track of the transfer of funds and even use the revenue generated for public welfare.”It does not need divine eyes to see that ‘satta’ in cricket and other games is reaching an alarming situation. The extent of money that it generated is diverted to clandestine and sinister objectives like drug trafficking and terrorist activities,” said additional sessions judge Dharmesh Sharma, of a Delhi trial court. “It is high time that our legislature seriously considers legalising the entire system of betting online or otherwise so that enough revenues can be generated to fund various infrastructural requirements for the common man and thus check the lucrative business in organised crime.”The judge cited a media report that claimed more than Rs. 20,000 crores (approximately US$4.27 billion) were pumped in by illegal betting syndicates during the IPL last year.”A little surfing on the internet would reveal that in Delhi alone there would be operating as many as 2,000-3,000 bookies at any given point of time when cricket matches or even other matches are played all over the world. This could not be done under the very nose of police without their knowledge,” the judge said.The court was also critical of the police for its laxity in trying to keep a check on the illegal business. “The half-hearted and lackadaisical approach of the police in nabbing the perpetrators of this organised crime on business leaves an irresistible impression that police is not only ill-equipped to deal with such cases but probably they have higher stake in continuance of the same under their patronage.”The court made its remarks while allowing an appeal by two people held guilty by a lower court for betting under the Delhi Police Gambling Act. It said there was not enough evidence to convict the two, who were prosecuted for organising betting on the 2007 World Cup match between Australia and South Africa.

Liverpool are reportedly confident that Mohamed Salah will sign a new deal at the club, with Luis Diaz’s arrival not affecting the situation whatsoever.

The Lowdown: Salah’s deal expiring soon

The 29-year-old has arguably stood out as the world’s best player this season, scoring 23 goals and registering nine assists for the Reds in all competitions.

Worryingly, Salah’s current deal expires in the summer of 2023, and talks regarding a new-and-improved contract at Anfield are still yet to show any real signs of progress, at least from the outside looking in.

Of course, if an agreement cannot be found, it will surely cross FSG’s mind that they are better off cashing in this summer than losing him for free in 15 months time, but a fresh update suggests that Liverpool fans’ worries could be eased soon.

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The Latest: New update emerges

According to Football Insider, a Liverpool source believes a new deal may soon be agreed for Salah, revealing the Reds are ‘confident’ and acting as an enormous boost for anyone associated with the club.

It is stated that talks could ramp up once the forward returns from Africa Cup of Nations duty, with Egypt taking on Sadio Mane’s Senegal in the final on Sunday.

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The Verdict: Simply has to be extend

The idea of Salah moving on, either this summer or when his contract runs out, simply doesn’t bear thinking about, given his vast influence at Liverpool.

He is already undoubtedly one of the all-time great Reds players – his record of 148 goals in 229 appearances is astonishing. He has been hailed as ‘extraordinary’ by former Arsenal striker Ian Wright, and his incredible fitness levels suggest he will remain a top player well into his thirties.

Liverpool’s owners divide opinion amongst the fanbase but failing to sort a new contract for Salah would be inexcusable, potentially even defining their entire reign at the club.

In other news, Liverpool and Manchester City are reportedly tracking the same player. Find out who it is here.

MatériaMais Notícias

O Boa Esporte não conseguiu sair com a vitória nesta quinta-feira. O jogo com o Atlético-MG terminou empatado, em 0 a 0, no Melão. O destaque da estreia do time de Varginha, no Campeonato Mineiro, foi o goleiro Fabrício.

O arqueiro impediu o gol do Galo diversas vezes ao longo da partida. Feliz por ter ajudado o time, Fabrício ressaltou a qualidade do adversário.

– Ninguém está atoa no Atlético-MG. Nós sabíamos da qualidade do time do Atlético. Sabíamos que teríamos muita dificuldade, até porque nosso time está sendo remontado agora. O time deles apesar de ter com pouco tempo de treinamento, está há mais tempo junto. Fico feliz pelo resultado, de ter ajudado a equipe no gol – disse o atleta.

O próximo compromisso do Boa Esporte é contra o Villa Nova, pela segunda rodada do estadual. A equipe de Varginha jogará no Estádio Castor Cifuentes, domingo, às 16h.

In an email, a copy of which is with Cricinfo, Sunil Gavaskar said teams would have the choice of retaining up to seven players, but all the players would still be part of the auction

Nagraj Gollapudi and Tariq Engineer09-Jul-2010IPL governing council member and former Indian captain, Sunil Gavaskar, has suggested a new formula for player retention which envisages the eight original franchises retaining seven of their existing players provided the franchises are willing to bid up to $2 million for them though the player auction.According to Gavaskar, the teams would be able to nominate the players they wish to retain but all the players would be part of the auction, with a cap of $2 million per player. If the price of a player at the auction reached the $2 million limit, the player’s original franchise would have first right of refusal, provided it was one of the bidders.The BCCI empowered a three-man panel comprising Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri and Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi to make recommendations on the structure of the league. Gavaskar said the panel agreed that player retention will hurt Pune and Kochi, the two new franchises, but felt the council should abide by an earlier decision that teams could keep four Indian and three overseas players.The spending limit at the auction would be $8 million, which means the franchises would have to think carefully about players they want to retain. In addition, the total number of players in a squad would be capped at 25, with a restriction on matches a single player can play in order to reduce the risk of burnout. “Since a player could only play 14 matches plus the knockouts, a franchise could play five overseas players in four matches, but not in the knockout stage,” Gavaskar said in an email which was sent to the eight captains of the original franchises. The email was not sent to franchise officials or team owners.The details of IPL 2011 have been shrouded in mystery since the suspension of chairman Lalit Modi in April. The franchise owners had met with BCCI president Shashank Manohar and interim IPL chairman Chirayu Amin on June 24 to exchange their views on next year’s event, after which Pataudi, Shastri and Gavaskar had one-one-meetings with the franchise owners about player retention, salary caps and squad sizes. At the meeting, eight of the franchises voiced their opposition to player retention, while Mumbai and Chennai were in favour of keeping players.Gavaskar said these proposals were put to the full council at a meeting on June 25, but no decision was taken. The issue will now be brought up again at the next council meeting in August.

Tottenham are now in pole position to sign Aston Villa target Rodrigo Bentancur, with Villa withdrawing from the race.

That’s according to Juventus correspondent Romeo Agresti, and, as to be expected, a number of Villa fans were quick to flock to the update on social media.

Villa had originally set their sights on a move for the Uruguayan and were hopeful of landing the central midfielder before Monday’s deadline.

Johan Lange offered the Italian giants £20.8m for the 24-year-old, however, that was rebuffed with Juventus wanting more. It now seems as if a move to north London could be on the cards, with Spurs launching an official bid for Bentancur late on Saturday evening.

Agresti took to Twitter on Saturday afternoon, revealing Tottenham are now leading the race for Bentancur after Villa took themselves out of the running. Fabrizio Romano has since provided a further update, revealing a move to Spurs has been agreed and will be completed soon.

Villa fans react

The AVFC Faithful and @villareport shared Agresti’s claim regarding Bentancur, which led to these Villa supporters giving their thoughts to the update, with many actually happy that a move wouldn’t go through.

“I’m happy about this.”