It was San Francisco Unicorns’ fourth win in four games, and Texas Super Kings’ first defeat in MLC 2025

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jun-2025Faf du Plessis slammed a 51-ball 100, but he had to do it alone, pretty much, for Texas Super Kings. That was the difference between Super Kings and San Francisco Unicorns on the day, since Unicorns had two men doing it, doing it at well over a-run-a-ball, and doing it for long enough. The quick half-centuries Matthew Short and Finn Allen hit were not only enough to take Unicorns over the line in a chase of 199, but get there with 23 balls in hand. The win kept them at the top of the MLC 2025 table with four wins in four, with Super Kings one spot below after their first loss.Super Kings were asked to bat, and du Plessis had two big partnerships for the first two wickets, but he had to contribute exactly 100 runs to those, which added up to 166. In the first stand, of 97, Devon Conway was unusually slow, scoring 23 in 23. In the second, worth 69, Saiteja Mukkamalla did better than Conway had, contributing 38 to du Plessis’ 30, though they went at roughly the same strike rate.To make matters worse for Super Kings, Mukkamalla, du Plessis and Marcus Stoinis fell in an eight-ball spell to Xavier Bartlett and Haris Rauf, and that derailed them at a point when they looked good to top 200.Faf du Plessis did most of the scoring for Texas Super Kings while he was around•Sportzpics for MLC

Du Plessis, though, was supreme in getting his first fifty-plus score since April 29, when he hit 62 in 45 balls for Delhi Capitals against Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2025. There were six fours and seven sixes in his innings as he scored at a strike rate of exactly 200 before being dismissed.But even if Super Kings had crossed 200, it’s unlikely Allen and Short would have cared.Allen barely got any of the strike in the first three overs as Short sped off the blocks, getting to 33 in 16 balls even as Allen was 1 off 2. After that, though, it was a different story. Over four, five and six went for 10, 23 and 15, and Unicorns were 83 for no loss after the powerplay and Allen was 34 off 16 to Short’s 46 off 21.The runs kept coming, and the half-centuries too, as the two took the total to 117 before being separated when Short holed out off Daryl Mitchell for a 29-ball 61. Allen was on 52 at that point in the ninth over, and batted on to score 78 in 35. When he was dismissed, by the impressive Adam Milne, Unicorns were just 30 runs away with 7.4 overs to go. Jake Fraser-McGurk took care of most of those with a 25-ball 37.

With teenager Lhuan-dre Pretorius set to open with him, Rickelton could be thrust into the senior role

Firdose Moonda06-Aug-2025There’s no Quinton de Kock, or Temba Bavuma, or Reeza Hendricks. While it has not been confirmed that the first of those has retired from the T20Is and the other two are completely out of the picture (though Bavuma probably is), South Africa will be looking at a new opening pair for the next T20 World Cup. Enter Ryan Rickelton and Lhuan-dre Pretorius.Both are left-handed and both are wicketkeepers. They have 18 T20I caps, two half-centuries and a decade in age between them. That means Rickelton, who enjoyed a breakthrough summer in Tests and ODIs for South Africa and played in his first IPL, could be thrust into the senior role even as he looks to cement himself in the side. How might that alter his usually aggressive approach to batting? Not at all, he said.”I’m still trying to establish myself in the T20 side but I don’t think there’ll be any expectation for me to change anything that I’ve been doing in these last two years,” Rickelton said from Darwin, where South Africa are set to play a three-match T20Is series against Australia starting Sunday. “It’s just an opportunity for me to hopefully claim that opening spot for this South African side, going into the World Cup and further on past that.”Related

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South Africa play three T20Is and will have the experience of regular captain Aiden Markram back in the top order and Rassie van der Dussen in the middle order, which Rickelton believes will allow him to continue to play his natural game. “The way the team is structured fits the mould of how they want me to play too, so I’m pretty comfortable with what’s required,” he said. “I am always looking to land that first punch and get the side off to a good start no matter who’s alongside me at the top.”Rickelton, Markram, as well as other returnees Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada, were all rested from the tri-series tournament in Zimbabwe as South Africa gear up for eight months of almost non-stop cricket. After the Australia tour, they will play white-ball cricket in England before starting their World Test Championship defence in Pakistan. That will be followed by an all-format tour of India, the SA20, a brief home series against West Indies and the T20 World Cup. Those five, and some others, will then go on to play in the IPL which will extend their active time to ten months. For someone like Rickelton, who did not play the MLC this year, the schedule has already provided lessons in workload management which he will draw on as the next busy period looms.”This was my first IPL year and it’s long three months in India which can really stretch you, mentally more than anything,” he said. “I would still like to play leagues when the opportunity comes along and next year there’s a break after the IPL so there’s some space in between.”Once you get to the groove of playing a lot of cricket, it can be really nice when you’re playing quite well but it can also be quite dark if you’re not playing too well. It’s more trying to manage the space mentally. That’s probably the balance that I’m trying to walk at the moment.”Ryan Rickelton opened for Mumbai Indians in IPL 2025•AFP/Getty Images

Rickelton can already see the challenge of that task. Since being part of the squad that won the WTC final at Lord’s in June, Rickelton has had six weeks off while Pretorius made his Test debut against Zimbabwe (and scored a century) and was moved around the T20I batting order from opening to No. 5 and back up.”I haven’t been hitting the ball too well these last couple of days but I’m not too worried. We’ve played a lot of cricket this year already and it’s not something that you just lose full stop. It will take a few more sessions for me to get going,” he said. “But I’m watching the rest of the guys, they’re really hitting the ball quite nicely and you can see the guys that have been playing are moving a lot better than a few of the guys that have taken a little bit of time off.”All of that changes from this week when South Africa press play on what is set to be an important period as they build under all-format coach Shukri Conrad, with two ICC tournaments and a new WTC cycle ahead of them.”If you look at the fixtures lined up for the T20 World Cup, we’ve got some big competition and some big rivals,” Rickelton said. “If we can put a good foot forward and play quite well and match what we want to try and replicate in a few months’ time, especially against quality opposition, that’s really important to the team and the individuals as well. We spoke about it as a group, we have an opportunity to try and win a series in Australia, which doesn’t come around that often, and we’re looking forward to obviously cementing our own places and playing well for South Africa.”

He is set to join the team ahead of Yorkshire’s game against Somerset starting September 8

Shashank Kishore04-Sep-2025India opener Mayank Agarwal is set to join Yorkshire on a short-term deal for the remainder of the County Championship.Agarwal, who is expected to link up with the squad ahead of their match against Somerset on Taunton starting September 8, will play three matches in all before returning to India in time for the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season. This will be Agarwal’s first county stint.He was most-recently in action at the Maharaja T20 Trophy, Karnataka’s flagship T20 tournament. Prior to that, he was part of an IPL-title winning campaign with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, after being signed as a late replacement for the injured Devdutt Padikkal.Agarwal, 34, is no stranger to England, having been on two tours previously with the Test side – in 2021-22 and for the World Test Championship final against Australia in June 2023.He had been in line to open during the 2021-22 tour, which India drew 2-2, but was ruled out prior to the series opener due to concussion. He has also been on two tours with the India A team.Agarwal, currently Karnataka’s all-format captain, comes with rich first-class experience. He has 8050 runs in 190 innings at an average of 43.98 with 18 hundreds and 44 half-centuries.In all, Agarwal has hit 1488 Test runs in 36 innings at an average of 41.33, with four Test centuries, including a best of 243 against South Africa. He played the most recent of his 21 Tests in March 2022 against Sri Lanka in Bengaluru.Other prominent Indians to feature in the UK domestic season this year are Khaleel Ahmed (Essex), Tilak Varma (Hampshire), Yuzvendra Chahal (Northants), Ishan Kishan (Notts) and Sai Kishore (Surrey). Jaydev Unadkat is set to join Sussex this month.

Nervy three-wicket win over Phoenix concludes fourth-placed campaign

ECB Media27-Aug-2025Trent Rockets concluded their campaign with a third successive win, Nat Sciver-Brunt’s third half-century of the competition setting up a nervy three-wicket victory over Birmingham Phoenix to nudge her team up to fourth in the table.Sciver-Brunt finished as the leading run-scorer in last summer’s women’s competition and the England skipper’s thrilling innings of 52 from 29 balls at Trent Bridge moved her up to second place in this season’s batting charts, behind Meg Lanning of Oval Invincibles.After the Rockets had been set 124 for victory, Em Arlott clean bowled the dangerous Bryony Smith for 10 with a superb slower yorker but Sciver-Brunt was quickly into her stride, sharing a second-wicket stand of 46 with Grace Scrivens (16) before Scrivens holed out to Arlott off the impressive Phoebe Brett.Ash Gardner struck two quick boundaries before falling to Megan Schutt via a stunning catch in the deep by Ailsa Lister and the Rockets threatened to implode when Sciver-Brunt chipped to extra cover off Hannah Baker immediately after bringing up her fifty and Brett dismissed Heather Graham and Ellie Threlkeld in the space of four deliveries, the young left-arm spinner finishing with figures of 3-19 as the hosts slipped to 109-6.Alana King made a crucial 9 to settle the nerves a little and when she edged behind off Schutt (2-24), courtesy of a superb catch from Amy Jones, it was left to Jodi Grewcock to hit the winning boundary with three balls to spare, securing a first home win of the season for the Rockets.Earlier, Emma Lamb’s second half-century of the competition had steered the Phoenix to 123-6, the England opener batting through the innings to finish unbeaten on 56 from 42.It was tough work at times for Lamb, who struck five boundaries, but she played judiciously as the Rockets’ high-class spin triumvirate of Kirstie Gordon (2-24), King (1-21) and Gardner (1-18) served up very few loose deliveries.Ellyse Perry (14), Marie Kelly (14) and Lister (12 off 6) played useful cameos to help push the visitors up to a competitive target but ultimately it wasn’t enough to prevent them slipping to a sixth defeat in eight.Sciver-Brunt, the Meerkat Match Hero, said: “I would have liked to be there at the end and made it a bit calmer for everybody but it wasn’t to be. In the three games I have made runs that’s not been the case, so that’s something to think about in future.”As a batting group, we’ve always said if we can get ahead of the game, try and stay ahead of the game. That was the tempo I wanted to go at. Getting out at that point, had we not been ahead of the game as we were, it probably would have been even more stressful.”It’s always nice to win at your home ground in front of your home fans and we haven’t been able to do that until today. The wicket is quite specific, it’s quite slow, and we probably didn’t adapt to that as quickly as we wanted to.”

Joseph Masi, of The Express & Star, has reported that West Bromwich Albion are looking to sign Cardiff City defender Lee Peltier.

The Baggies haven’t kept a clean sheet in any of their last 10 league games, so the 33-year-old someone who could help solve that issue.

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However, the club’s fanbase are split on whether signing the right-back would actually be a positive move or not.

Masi referred to the club wanting a “battle-hardened and experienced” player to come in and help solidify the defence, which Peltier certainly is.

Throughout his career, the veteran has played a total of 270 Championship matches for teams including Leeds United and Leicester City.

He hasn’t fallen away this season either, as he has made 24 league starts for Cardiff, averaging 1.4 tackles, 1.2 interceptions, 3.1 clearances and 0.6 blocks per game.

However, not everybody is happy about the prospect of Peltier making the move from Cardiff to the Hawthorns.

One fan has picked up on the fact that in all those Championship games this season he hasn’t recorded any goals or assists, while another suggests the club should send scouts to spot some talent at the “walking football centre” if they want experienced defenders.

Premier League experts will get full marks: The ultimate quiz on top flight transfer flops…

It seems as though some of the supporters were looking for more of a big and exciting name, rather than someone who can provide another functional option at the back.

Meanwhile, stay up to date with the Deadline Day action by looking at the FFC live blog.

Bayern Munich star Arjen Robben believes that Manchester United can win the title this season with the presence of Memphis Depay, according to reports from the Mirror.

United brought in Depay from PSV Eindhoven in a £25million deal as the club’s first summer signing back in May, and the Dutchman scored his first competitive goals in a 3-1 win over Club Brugge this week, grabbing a brace.

Now wearing the iconic number 7 shirt once belonging to the likes of David Beckham, George Best, and Cristiano Ronaldo, Robben is adamant that he will become one of the best players in the world just like the previous legends.

WANT MORE? >> Manchester United Transfer News | Latest Transfer News

“He can become one of the top players in the world at Manchester United,” he said.

“He is already at such a high level, but playing at one of the biggest clubs in the world he will get even better. Manchester United will want to get back to winning trophies, and he will be a big part of that.

“I know that there was ­Liverpool and Manchester United ­interested in him, but it was an easy decision for him. There would have been no reason for him to join a club not playing in the Champions League, and Louis van Gaal is one of the best coaches in the world.

“Memphis can become the complete player under his ­[Van Gaal’s] guidance. It will not be easy, it never is when there are so many new players to settle him, but I think Louis could win the league with Manchester United this year.

“It’s his team now, his players, and if the new signings settle quickly, I think it’s possible.”

During the game against Brugge, Depay also managed to assist Marouane Fellaini for the third goal, showcasing his passing ability.

The Red Devils have also made a good start to their Premier League campaign, beating Tottenham Hotspur and then Aston Villa with the same 1-0 score-line.

Last season, the 21-year-old made 40 appearances for PSV, scoring 28 goals.

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As if the haters didn’t already have the ammo need to launch scathing attacks on Arsene Wenger, Danny Welbeck’s latest injury set-back has parachuted in all the rounds they need to fire at will towards the Frenchman.

England manager Roy Hodgson has confirmed that the versatile forward will miss six months of action after having surgery on his left knee, leaving the Premier League club seriously short of options up front. Oh dear.

Although injuries happen, Arsenal’s lack of transfer activity over the summer –Petr Cech was their only signing – has raised serious questions about the policy being employed at the club, especially as they must have had knowledge of Welbeck’s situation over the closing week of the window.

So, how can the London club cope? What can Wenger do to ease the growing dissent? And just how will the expected title challenge be kept on track? Well, here are FIVE possible options…

Try Oxlade-Chamberlain up front

Hold on, this one may not be as unorthodox as you think. Just look at ‘The Ox’s’ skills… He’s pacey, powerful, a very good finisher and at 5ft. 11”, he’s not in the ‘pint size’ mould.

He’s also shown that a central berth suits him in the past when used as a ‘No.10’ and the ability to influence the play from such a zone suggests he has the intelligence to adapt his game.

Pick up a free agent

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Even though the transfer window has closed, Arsenal can still bring in a name or two to boost numbers at the Emirates Stadium. Okay, the pool of players has been severely reduced with only free agents available, and their qualities may be questionable – after all, these guys were released and not picked up over the summer. However, there are one or two Arsenal could move for:

Carlton Cole – Although his cumbersome movement has been mocked, he boasts Premier League experience and could be a reserve option for the rest of the season at the age of 31.

Yoann Gourcuff – A ‘No.10’ playmaker or a deep-lying passer, the Frenchman could allow Sanchez or Walcott to be used more frequently in attack.

Ilsinho – The 29-year-old Brazilian right-back/right midfielder left Shakhtar Donetsk over the summer upon the end of his contract. He has experience and could be used on the flanks as a back-up option.

Give Joel Campbell a chance

Yep, he’s still at the club. Despite successive summers of almost leaving North London on a permanent transfer, the Costa Rica international remains on the peripheries of Wenger’s squad, and it’s quite baffling that he hasn’t been given a true run of first-team opportunities.

Yes, the 23-year-old may not be of sufficient quality to make a major impact, but he showed during his home nation’s impressive 2014 World Cup run that he has the ability to work well from wide or as part of a forward unit, while his pace and technique suggest he could be a good fit in a Wenger system.

Rely on squad depth

Luckily for Arsenal, Welbeck’s injury leaves the club with options. Had Olivier Giroud picked up a knock then Wenger would suddenly be looking at half a season without an orthodox centre-forward in his ranks, while a similar state of affairs at centre-back would have seriously depleted his options.

Alas, Welbeck has spent much of his Gunners career in a wide position, and luckily for the London club there are options to step in.

Theo Walcott can be shifted wide, albeit he may need to be rotated so he’s available to play up front, while the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Santi Cazorla, Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez and even Aaron Ramsey can be used from either flank.

Learn from mistakes

This is one Gooners have been crying out for for some time. Arsenal fans simply want Wenger to spend more readily, with the club’s failure to sign an outfield player during the last window – making them the only side in any of Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues to have done so – alarming.

Okay, the Gunners have snapped up Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez in recent years, but the feeling of a title charge being so close following the impressive run at the end of the season irked many, and now Welbeck’s injury has given critics all the ammo they need.

Aston Villa today announced they have parted company with manager Tim Sherwood today, following their run of six consecutive defeats.

Sherwood saw his side let their lead slip against Swansea City yesterday, as they lost 2-1 at home and remain second bottom in the table.

Despite maintaining the club’s Premier League status when he took over from Paul Lambert back in February, and leading the club to the FA Cup final, he failed to convince for large parts of this season.

Fans don’t seem to be too bothered on Twitter, with many believing the Villa Park board have made the right choice in an effort to save their season. The former Spurs boss had seemingly been on the brink of an exit for a while.

Recently sacked Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has been linked with the job, as well as Real Sociedad chief David Moyes should he wish to return to England following his doomed spell at Manchester United.

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Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has refused to use injuries to his key strikers as an excuse for the team’s inconsistent form in recent weeks, according to the Guardian.

Both perennial crock Daniel Sturridge and Christian Benteke are currently on the treatment table, with doubts over their fitness ahead of this weekend’s Premier League clash with Southampton on Sunday.

Danny Ings has also suffered a serious injury that will keep him out until the summer, which means that Divock Origi has been leading the line for the Merseyside outfit.

WANT MORE? >> Liverpool transfer news | Latest transfer news

Klopp, who took over from Brendan Rodgers and has drawn his first two games at the club against Tottenham and Rubin Kazan, stated that the injuries were unfortunate but not a reason to make excuses.

“We have the players we need and you will never hear from me: ‘With Sturridge we can do this’ or: ‘With Benteke we can do that’,” The Guardian quote the German as saying.

“I am really satisfied with the guys we have on the pitch already. I am not saying we don’t need strikers.

“Sometimes you need a finisher, a guy for the last ball – that is always the same in football – but if for any reason they are not available or not fully fit, then you must make the probability bigger that you can win with the players that you have.”

Klopp has been handed a sizeable task in trying to restore the Reds to their former glories but has arrived at Anfield with a significant reputation from his time at Borussia Dortmund.

Most Liverpool fans will be anxious to see if the former Bundesliga trainer will bring any new players to the club in the January transfer window, with his presence a drawcard for the club.

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One of the most astonishing subplots to an enthralling Premier League season so far has been the fairytale rise of current table-toppers, Leicester City.

The Foxes were not given much hope ahead of the campaign, with the appointment of journeyman manager Claudio Ranieri not inspiring the masses to believe that the King Power Stadium outfit would have a successful campaign.

Fast forward a couple of months and Leicester have exceeded even their supporters’ wildest dreams by topping the Premier League table after 15 games.

The Italian manager has instilled a real team ethic at the club, while Riyad Mahrez has been a star for the club on the flanks.

However, it is hard to look past the breath-taking form of Jamie Vardy in Leicester’s ascent, with the sprightly forward becoming one of the land’s most-feared centre forwards. It has been the 28-year-old’s goals, 14 in total, that have fired Ranieri’s men up the table and propelled the striker into the limelight. Vardy’s story of maturing in non-league football to leading the Premier League’s scoring charts and becoming an England international is a heartwarming one.

The pacey forward even managed to surpass Ruud van Nistelrooy’s record for goals in consecutive Premier League games, aptly completing the feat against the Dutchman’s former team Manchester United.

Vardy’s incredible form has led to widespread speculation over his future, with Leicester keen to tie him down to a new contract but the likes of United thought to be interested in the attacker.

As such, the centre forward has a real decision to make over just where he will play his football in upcoming campaigns and whether he is ready to leave his current employers.

Should United come in for the Englishman, rejecting a switch to Old Trafford would be a difficult proposition.

The Red Devils are undergoing a rebuilding process under Louis van Gaal and despite not being at their former levels of glory, remain one of the most historic clubs in the world game.

United are lacking in flair in the final third this year, with an over-reliance on Anthony Martial to get goals for a misfiring side.

Despite Vardy’s introduction potentially serving as a shot in the arm for the Manchester club, there are reasons why the England international would be best served where he is.

The 28-year-old’s style of play is similar to that of Martial and as such it is likely that he would be in direct competition for the number nine role with the former Monaco man should be move to United.

Van Gaal’s charges look destined to reinforce their squad in repeated upcoming transfer windows and as such Vardy would certainly not be guaranteed a starting berth at the club should he move there.

At Leicester, who are ahead of the Red Devils on the table currently, the Englishman is a cult figure, the main attacking weapon and a player that can achieve his club and national ambitions despite not being at one of England’s ‘biggest’ clubs.

As such, should Van Gaal, United and tens of millions of pounds coming knocking this January, Vardy would be advised to make brace decision and stay just where he is.

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