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DUBAI: Al-Kholood secured a crucial 1-0 victory over Al-Ahli in the 15th round of the Roshn Saudi League at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Buraidah.
The match’s only goal came from Alex Collado in the 90+2nd minute, earning Al-Kholood three vital points.
With the win, Al-Kholood increased its tally to 16 points, moving to 12th place in the standings. Meanwhile, Al-Ahli remains in fifth place on 26 points.
MULTAN: Pakistan hopes its tried and tested spin template will be successful against the West Indies as the two bottom-placed teams in the World Test Championship gear up for the two-test series starting from Friday.
The same pitch has been prepared for the first test in Multan on which Pakistan spinners Sajid Khan and Noman Ali neutralized England’s aggressive “Bazball” in October when the groundskeepers successfully dried out the 22-yard strip with the help of giant industrial-sized fans and patio heaters.
“We emphasized during the England series that home conditions are very important in test cricket,” Pakistan captain Shan Masood said on Thursday.
“We adapted a style of play, style of pitches, (and) now we will try ... to carry forward the momentum of the England series.”
Pakistan came from behind to beat England 2-1 on engineered dry pitches in Multan and Rawalpindi after losing the first test by an innings when the tourists amassed a record 823-7 declared in the first innings.
Off-spinner Sajid and left-arm spinner Noman grabbed 39 of the 40 wickets in the last two test matches against England, and were in the 15-man squad after being overlooked for the away series against South Africa, which Pakistan lost 2-0.
Leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed, who missed the home series against England because of illness, was included as the third specialist spinner in the playing XI with off-spinner Salman Ali Agha giving the home team a fourth spin option.
Pakistan has lost eight of its last 10 test matches under Masood’s captaincy since he was elevated to red-ball skipper in December 2023. But the skipper believed Pakistan couldn’t capitalize a number of times against Australia, Bangladesh and South Africa after putting opponents on the back foot.
“There are lots of test matches during last year when we lost the games after coming into a winning position,” Masood said. “There were only one or two one-sided matches … we came into good positions but couldn’t finish it. The lesson for this team is how we can convert it into victories.”
Pakistan will be without its in-form opening batter Saim Ayub, who was ruled out of competitive cricket for up to six weeks after fracturing his right ankle during the series in South Africa. Ayub will be replaced by Mohammad Huraira, who scored half-centuries in both innings during the three-day warmup game against the West Indies in Islamabad.
The West Indies has yet to win a series in this WTC cycle. It has lost to India, England and South Africa while drawing 1-1 against Australia and Bangladesh.
But captain Kraigg Brathwaite was hopeful that his team could finish the WTC cycle on a high.
“This series is very important for us,” Brathwaite said. “It’s a new year … it is important to finish this cycle strong and that’s our focus.”
Fast bowler Shamar Joseph was ruled of the series due to shin splits while another pacer, Alzarri Joseph, preferred to play in the ILT20 league in the United Arab Emirates.
Brathwaite said the tourists have left out vice-captain Joshua Da Silva from the playing XI while fast bowler Kemar Roach misses out because of illness.
Multan will also host the second test, starting from Jan. 25 due to ongoing upgrades at Pakistan’s two main stadiums in Karachi and Lahore for next month’s Champions Trophy.
DUBAI: Rory McIlroy got his 2025 season underway with a two-under-par 70 first round at the Dubai Desert Classic on Thursday, five shots off the three leaders.
US amateur David Ford, Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia and Australian David Micheluzzi all fired opening round 65s to sit top of the leaderboard.
Northern Irishman McIlroy won the season-ending DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates in November for his third successive Race to Dubai title.
And making his first start in two months, the 35-year-old hit four birdies for two bogeys at Emirates Golf Club.
“Yeah, pretty scrappy,” McIlroy said.
“Actually I felt I played probably better the first eight holes where I was one over compared to the last 10 where I was three under.
“It was a bit scrappy. First competitive round of the year. First competitive round in a while. Definitely not as comfortable as I was in practice and coming in here.
“But it’s nice to get a card in your hand. I got it around and got it in in a couple under, which is nice, and didn’t put myself out of the tournament, which is the main thing.”
McIlroy is aiming for his third successive Dubai Desert Classic win, and fifth overall.
Spanish rival Jon Rahm carded a 69 after an eagle on the par-five 10th mixed with four birdies and three bogeys.
McIlroy and Rahm are in a battle of the No.1 players on the DP World Tour and LIV Golf Tour at the $9 million Hero Dubai Desert Classic.
On the first day of action, Ford, who plays University golf in the United States and was part of their winning Walker Cup side in 2023, eagled the tenth — his first hole of the day — and mixed six birdies with a single bogey.
“I try to keep my expectations low,” added Ford, 22, who sits sixth on the World Amateur Golf Rankings.
“I know where my game is at right now and I have got a lot of people around me believing in me which is really helpful going into this week.”
Micheluzzi had seven birdies in a flawless opening round with Gouveia firing eight birdies and one bogey as he chases his maiden DP World Tour win in his 190th event.
World No.8 and 2022 champion Viktor Hovland of Norway had six bogeys and three birdies in a three-over round of 75.
Dubai-based world No.10 Tommy Fleetwood of England carded 71 and American phenomenon Akshay Bhatia had an opening 69.
BERLIN: With half a season played, red-hot Omar Marmoush has put Eintracht Frankfurt on course for a first top-four finish in over 30 years and placed Europe’s elite clubs on high alert.
The Egyptian’s stunning 2024-25 — he sits one behind top scorer Harry Kane in the Bundesliga with 15 goals, along with 10 assists, in 17 league games — has led to speculation of a winter move to faltering English champions Manchester City.
In Europe’s top-five leagues, his 25 goal contributions rank second only behind countryman Mohamed Salah, who has 31, having played three games more.
Third-placed Frankfurt host Borussia Dortmund on Friday and sit eight points ahead of last season’s Champions League finalists.
Frankfurt last finished in the top four in 1992-93 and risk being a victim of Marmoush’s success should the 25-year-old move on.
DUBAI: Al-Ettifaq defeated hosts Damac 3-0 in Khamis Mushait on Wednesday in their Saudi Pro League match.
Steven Gerrard’s team took an important victory, with goals from Mousa Dembele in the 22nd and 45th minutes, and Vitinho adding a third in the 83rd minute.
The win takes Al-Ettifaq’s points total to 18, moving them up to 11th in the league table. Damac are currently in 10th with the same number of points but a better goal difference.
David White, CEO of DP World ILT20, has responded to adverse comments made by Graeme Smith, commissioner of South Africa’s Betway SA 20 league, about the ILT20.
Smith expressed a view that ILT20 “was not good for the game, with no investment back into local cricket.” As suggested in this column last week, Smith’s opinion took neither proper account of ILT20’s involvement in local UAE cricket nor the vastly different starting points from which the two leagues set off on their franchise journeys.
White took a similar line in his response, suggesting that Smith should have taken a closer look at the Emirates Cricket Board’s overall strategy. The UAE has long provided a safe bridge over troubled waters. Initially in Sharjah, its ability to be a go-to haven has grown with the Dubai International Stadium and the Sheikh Zayed and Tolerance Stadiums In Abu Dhabi. Most recently, in October 2024, the prospect of canceling the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup because of civil unrest in Bangladesh was averted by the ability to move the tournament to the UAE. A solution to the standoff between India and Pakistan over the 2025 Champions Trophy has also been supplied by the compromise to play India’s matches in Dubai.
Further back, the IPL was played in the UAE in 2021 because of COVID-19 restrictions in India, while the 2014 event was switched because it clashed with Indian general elections. The men’s T20 World Cup was also shifted to the UAE and Oman in 2021. On top of that, the ICC academy offers top-notch training facilities and two grounds on which to play. It is no surprise that the UAE attracts teams and players at professional level for training camps and competitions. It is also accessible from Europe and South Asia. A measure of its success is that the idea of English county teams going to the UAE for pre-season training is no longer considered to be risible.
While these aspects do not directly address Smith’s criticism, they do illustrate the UAE’s pivotal position in cricket’s ecosystem. Aware of this, the Emirates Cricket Board is seeking to use that position to develop its own domestic strength. Who can blame them? Funds have been invested in the community game and in school’s festivals. A secondary school competition has been reintroduced. Three hundred players registered for a development tournament, after which there was a draft with 25 players selected to participate in ILT20. There, they will learn from leading players and coaches.
South Africa, on the other hand, has been playing organized cricket since the mid-19th century, with the first club established at Port Elizabeth in 1843. In 1889 an England team visited to play two matches against a South African X1, in what would later be classed as Tests. The strength of South Africa’s cricket was encapsulated in 2012, when its men’s team became the first one to top the ICC rankings in all three formats of the game. The country’s position and reputation in world cricket is very different to that of the UAE. However, its financial position has been fragile and a franchise league was created to address that issue. SA20 can draw on a sizeable pool of domestic talent and Cricket South Africa has ensured that the best of that talent is available. The tournament requires franchises to sign 19 players, with a minimum of ten South Africans, a maximum of seven international players, a new rookie South African and a wildcard.
One of Smith’s gripes about ILT20 is the number of international players allowed to play in the tournament. Each playing 11 must include at least two UAE players and four in the squad overall. Smith’s view seems to be that this is not enough. One day the balance may well change when enough UAE players emerge with the ability to perform to the levels set by ILT20. Recalibrating the balance too early runs the risk of reducing the tournament’s quality. It would be wrong to suggest that ILT20’s strategy is not developmental. It takes time and patience.
Apart from financial considerations, SA20’s main goal is to nurture the improvement and growth of South African domestic players and the overall domestic system. Smith has gone so far as to argue that SA20 has already helped in the men’s Test team reaching the final of the World Test Championship. This seems to be an opportunistic claim. One thing that ILT20 achieves, but SA20 does not, is to facilitate participation by players from other ICC Associate members. This year, Nepal, Malaysia, the US, Scotland, Netherlands, Namibia and Italy are represented.
Both tournaments have got off to exciting starts. In SA20, last year’s winners, Sunrisers Eastern Cape, lost their first three matches, anchored at the foot of the table. The opening match of ILT20, a re-run of last year’s final, was won by one run by last year’s beaten finalists Dubai Capitals against the Mumbai Indians. Two days later, the Indians had their revenge. The 2023 winners, Gulf Giants, were beaten by six wickets by the team which they defeated, the Desert Vipers, in the final. The Giants’ innings reads curiously. In a total of 119 for nine, James Vince scored an unbeaten 76.
Vince has played 55 times for England, is a long-standing captain of Hampshire, which he led three times to success in T20 competitions, plus high positions in the county championship. On Jan. 13, he announced that he was quitting red-ball cricket to focus on white-ball cricket in 2025. He will play in the Pakistan Super League, or PSL, which will be staged in April this year so as not to clash with the Champions Trophy.
Vince had a decision to make between the PSL or red-ball cricket with Hampshire. The England and Wales Cricket Board has stipulated that only players with white-ball-only contracts will be allowed to play in overseas franchise tournaments during English season months. Vince’s case is an example of the ways in which franchise tournaments are shaping both the future of cricket and its players’ careers.
Each franchise has different objectives and strategies. Collectively, they are shifting cricket’s landscape. They do not appear to talk to each other and there is no regulation. Is it too much to expect that, one day, they may respect and understand their differences for the overall benefit of the game?
