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Enzo Maresca has singled out one Chelsea player following their dismal 3-1 loss to lowly Leeds United. The Blues came into the Elland Road clash off the back of a 3-0 win over Barcelona and a 1-1 draw with Arsenal – a game where they were a man down for more than 45 minutes. Although they were beaten by Daniel Farke's side in midweek, Maresca doesn't think their lack of experience had much to do with it.

Chelsea suffer Leeds horror show

Chelsea came to Leeds on Wednesday with Premier League title ambitions but they were sent homeward to think again after a chastening 3-1 loss. The Whites started the day in the relegation zone but were fully deserving of the three points as a disjointed and petulant Blues side were put to the sword. After the defeat, head coach Maresca admitted his team – who have the youngest squad in the Premier League with an average age of 23 years – didn't deserve to come away with anything from the encounter.

He told : "A very poor night, they [Leeds] deserved to win the game, they were better in all aspects. [We will] Just try to analyse and learn from this game and focus o the next one. It's not about possession, in possession you need a purpose. Today they were better in all aspects. Congratulations to them. After the goal we scored we had one or two clear chances, but the third goal killed the game completely, then it's much more difficult. It's reality, it's Premier League, you need to perform every game, no matter if you are at home or away or who the other team is. It's important to see where we are going to be in February or March, but most important is to understand what we did bad tonight and then try to improve."

AdvertisementGETTY/GOALChelsea man incurs Maresca's wrath

While nobody had a particularly good night for Chelsea, ahead of facing Bournemouth on Saturday, Maresca singled out centre-back Tosin Adarabioyo for his mistake that led to Leeds' third goal. The Italian was asked if the team's lack of experience hurt them in Yorkshire, with captain Reece James, the suspended Moises Caicedo and more not in the starting XI. But he pointed out that the former Fulham defender was their oldest player, and that didn't help him a great deal. 

He said, via : "Listen, we always talk about experience when we drop points. When we beat Barcelona, we drew against Arsenal, no one was mentioning about experienced players. So, again, I understand that when we don't win, we are always looking for the reason why, but I think the reason why we didn't win against Leeds is not because of the experience, it's because we were not good enough. But we have experienced players. Unfortunately, they were not inside the pitch. One because he was suspended, the other one because of injury. So, it's because in that moment, the ones that have more experience, they were out. Who is the oldest one for us in the pitch? Who was? Tosin. Did he play good? So, it's not about experience. It's about that 11 players, they were not good enough. I know that we are always looking for experience, but it was a bad game for all of us."

Chelsea to continue rotating

Maresca was criticised after he made five changes from the Chelsea side that drew with Arsenal for the match at Leeds. But with the Blues regularly playing three games a week, due to Premier League and Champions League duties, the former Leicester City manager is conscious of not over-exerting his players – especially after their Club World Cup-winning exploits this summer. 

When asked about how difficult it is to keep tweaking his starting line-ups, he replied: "Yeah, it's the most difficult thing for me, personally, this season. Because, as I said, for many reasons, we need to make changes. Now, we played two days ago, we came back yesterday afternoon. We have just one session this morning. Most of them, they cannot take part of the session because they need to recover. So, we're going to try to prepare in the best way tomorrow."

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Getty Images SportWhat comes next for Chelsea?

Chelsea, who are still fourth in the Premier League but are now nine points behind table-toppers Arsenal after 14 games, will hope to bounce back from their loss to Leeds when they travel to Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon. The Cherries have lost four of their last five fixtures, so this game presents a good opportunity for Maresca's side to return to winning ways.

Enzo Maresca is currently enduring a tricky period as Chelsea boss, with his side suffering somewhat of a decline in form over the last couple of weeks across all competitions.

The Blues are currently enduring a run of four games without a win, with three of which coming in the Premier League – resulting in a drop in the current standings.

After the last three matches, the Italian’s side have now dropped from second in England’s top-flight, down to fifth and now sit eight points off leaders Arsenal.

However, Maresca will have the chance to strengthen his squad in the upcoming January transfer window, potentially kickstarting any chance of securing the title.

Even though the window is a few weeks away, the hierarchy have already wasted no time in targeting numerous players to try and strengthen the squad in key areas.

Chelsea’s transfer targets ahead of the January window

Over the last couple of weeks, Chelsea have been just one of the Premier League clubs touted with a potential winter move to land RB Leipzig Castello Lukeba.

It’s been reported that the Frenchman could be available for a fee in the region of £52m this winter, but the Bundesliga side are currently unwilling to offload the youngster.

The 22-year-old is a left-footed centre-back, something which is a huge selling point to the hierarchy amid the absence of Levi Colwill this season.

However, he’s not the only target currently on their radar, with Barcelona central midfielder Marc Casado another option being considered by the Blues board.

According to one Spanish outlet, Maresca’s men have already made contact with the LaLiga outfit over a potential move this winter, but it’s unclear if they would sanction a move.

It also states that the Spaniard is seen as one of the club’s targets for the upcoming window, with the youngster seen as an excellent option to bolster the options in midfield.

Why Chelsea’s latest target would be Caicedo 2.0

Spending big money on a midfielder isn’t alien to Chelsea, with the club previously spending a then English-record transfer fee on the signature of Moises Caicedo.

The Ecuadorian international cost a reported £115m from Brighton & Hove Albion in the summer of 2023, with the 24-year-old making himself a fan-favourite in the process.

He’s already racked up 117 appearances for the Blues to date, starring at both ends of the pitch – as seen by his tally of seven goals including a screamer against Liverpool this season.

However, his disciplinary record has held him back at times, as seen against Arsenal last month, when he received a straight red card for a reckless tackle on Mikel Merino.

There’s no denying that Caicedo remains as one of Maresca’s most important players, but the club could be about to land their next version of the midfielder this January with a move for Casado.

The 22-year-old has made 11 appearances in LaLiga so far this campaign, subsequently producing numerous incredible figures and leading one analyst labelling him “world-class”.

When comparing his stats to those of Caicedo in the last few months, the Barca star has managed to outperform him in multiple key areas – subsequently showcasing his incredible talents.

Casado has dominated the Blues star in possession so far this campaign, as seen by his better pass completion far and more passes completed into the final third per 90.

Such numbers could make him yet another ball-playing option for the manager, which could help them get out of the current slump they find themselves in.

Games played

11

12

Minutes played

534

982

Passes completed

92%

90%

Key passes

1.4

0.5

Passes into final third

6.1

5.4

Blocks made

2.1

1.1

Clearances made

1.8

1.1

Progressive carries

1.2

0.8

Take-on success

50%

31%

Aerials won

60%

38%

His talent with the ball at his feet is further reflected in his tally of more take-ons completed, whilst also completing more progressive carries per 90, which could help the Blues create more chances.

However, with the ball, Casado has been just as impressive, subsequently achieving more blocks and clearances per 90 than the £115m man in 2025/26.

It’s currently unclear if the Barca star would want to make the move to England, but it’s evident he would offer Chelsea a top-level player in their hunt for added success.

The prospect of the Spaniard operating alongside Caicedo is one for the fans to get excited about, with such a partnership potentially operating together for many years to come.

Chelsea's next star: BlueCo have signed a talent who's like Estevao & Caicedo

The hugely exciting wonderkid has been compared to two of Chelsea’s best players.

ByJack Salveson Holmes 3 days ago

The Australia allrounder will play Shield cricket in December and is seen as a potential top-order option in the Tests against England

Alex Malcolm19-Nov-2025Mitchell Marsh remains in Ashes calculations with Australia’s T20I captain set to make a surprise return to Sheffield Shield cricket in early December for Western Australia with a role at the top of the order to be discussed.Meanwhile, reserve Test wicketkeeper Josh Inglis is set to play for the Cricket Australia XI against the England Lions at Lilac Hill on Friday and is also likely to bat high in the order.Marsh’s return to Shield cricket is an intriguing development. He had claimed he would be “six beers deep” while watching the first Test from the stands in Perth and is not going to play in WA’s round five day-night Shield clash with South Australia that starts on Saturday in Adelaide.However, he is in line to play in WA’s round six clash with Victoria at the MCG starting on December 4. He is also likely to play in WA’s One-Day Cup clash with Victoria at Junction Oval on December 2.Marsh, 34, has not played a first-class match since he was dropped from the Australian side after the Boxing Day Test against India in December last year. He has not played a Shield match for WA since October last year.Marsh has long downplayed his prospects of returning to the Test squad and had even been hesitant about committing to play any more first-class cricket for his state.But chairman of selectors George Bailey had said as far back as April that Marsh’s Test career was not over, and Australia’s selectors had quietly been planning for months to keep Marsh in red-ball calculations given his wonderful recent white-ball form and his outstanding record against high-pace bowling, which England are planning to unleash on Australia throughout the Ashes series.Jake Weatherald is set to bat at the top of the order in Perth against England•Getty ImagesCoach Andrew McDonald confirmed recently that the selectors “would be comfortable” picking Marsh if they needed him but he wasn’t named in Australia’s squad for the first Test.There are questions on Usman’s Khawaja’s ability to get through the Ashes given his recent form against high pace and the fact that he will turn 39 during the Adelaide Test.Australia’s other opening position has even more questions on it. If Jake Weatherald is selected to debut in Perth, he will be Khawaja’s seventh opening partner in Australia’s last 16 Tests.Marsh has never opened the batting in 210 first-class innings and has only batted at No.3 three times, once for Australia in a rain-affected Test against West Indies and twice for an Australian XI in tour matches against Worcestershire and Derbyshire on the 2019 Ashes tour.Marsh has never batted higher than No. 4 for WA and Australia’s selectors have been firm in their stance in recent years that they don’t dictate to states where potential Test players should bat in Shield teams. However, it is understood there may be a discussion between the selectors and WA about where it is preferred Marsh bats given his Shield appearance is likely to be a one-off before the BBL begins, with Marsh set to be unavailable for the second half of the Shield season due to the T20 World Cup.If he were to open, it would break-up WA’s long-standing three-time Shield winning opening duo of Sam Whiteman and Cameron Bancroft, although Marsh could also bat at No. 3 with WA’s middle-order having been a moving feast this season with the return of Cameron Green for three of the first four games, Cooper Connolly coming in and out due to Australia A and Australia white-ball duty and Inglis’ return for the most recent Shield game.Usman Khawaja is 39 years old and may be playing his final Test series•Getty ImagesFormer Australia captain and selector Greg Chappell had advocated for Marsh to open the batting in Perth even after the Test squad was announced. Marsh has a Test average of 28.53 after 80 innings and averages just 12.57 in his nine Test innings batting at Nos. 3-5. Marsh’s best performances in Test cricket have come at No. 6 where he has averaged 31.24, scored all three of his Test centuries and eight of his nine half-centuries.Marsh won’t be available as an allrounder as his bowling has remained “offline” since a back injury kept him out of the Champions Trophy in February with no update on whether he will ever return to bowl even in white-ball cricket.The decision to hold Inglis in Perth and play him in the CA XI game rather than send him to Adelaide is so that he is available as a concussion sub, having kept in Australia’s last Test in Jamaica when Alex Carey was concussed and also batted at No.4 in the first Test of the West Indies series when Steven Smith was missing with a finger injury.He is set to bat high in the order against England Lions, however it understood that it is just to provide him with the toughest challenge and the most possible time in the middle rather than to build further opening options for later in the series. Like Marsh, Inglis has never opened in first-class cricket and averages 15.22 in nine first-class innings at Nos. 3-4. All of his first-class success, including all eight of his centuries and his lone Test century, have come batting at No.5 or lower.

Mark Bellingham, the father of England and Real Madrid superstar Jude and Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jobe, has made an unexpected return to amateur football by signing for outfit FC Herdecke-Ende. Bellingham, a prolific striker in English non-league football with over 700 career goals, joined the Kreisliga B side after relocating to Germany to be closer to his youngest son.

Bellingham back with a bang

Bellingham initially approached the club asking to train with their veterans' team, and officials at Herdecke-Ende were unaware of his identity until they saw his famous surname on his membership application. Club chairman Frank Samson noted he was "totally normal" and approachable. Bellingham has already made an immediate impact, with teammates and club officials praising his fitness and describing his goalscoring ability as "lethal" after scoring a brace on his debut. His arrival has generated significant excitement and media interest around the small club, which is located on the outskirts of Dortmund.  

AdvertisementGetty Images SportGerman boss: 'He’s shown his class'

FC Herdecke-Ende club boss Marcel Schunke said: "Mark's lethal in front of goal. Three goals in two matches and an assist, he’s shown his class straight away. And all of a sudden everyone was speaking English in the changing rooms." 

The Bellinghams' growing legacy in Germany

Jude’s three-season tenure at Dortmund saw him rapidly become acknowledged as a world-class midfielder after joining in 2020. He made 132 appearances, won the 2020-21 German Cup, and was named the 2022-23 Bundesliga Player of the Season before his £90 million ($120m) transfer to Real Madrid. 

His younger brother, Jobe, is at the very beginning of his time at Dortmund, having only joined the club in June this year from Sunderland. Jobe signed a five-year contract and has made several appearances across all competitions this season, including in the Bundesliga and Champions League. He is currently working to establish himself as a regular starter and forge his own path, having initially faced immense pressure and comparisons to his older brother's successful spell at the club. Jobe has scored one goal, which came in the FIFA Club World Cup. 

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Getty Images SportFamily issues blight the Bellinghams

Bellingham Snr, a former police sergeant, is currently living in Germany and separated from Jude and Jobe's mum, Denise, with whom he spent more than 20 years in a relationship. The boys' parents, who had lived in separate countries for years to support their sons' careers, are now said to be in a "dangerously tense atmosphere". This upheaval is reportedly affecting their younger son, Jobe, who is struggling with personal matters and feeling insecure and pressured in Dortmund. Additionally, the family faces scrutiny regarding Mark's involvement with the clubs; he was recently involved in an altercation with Borussia Dortmund's sporting director over Jobe's playing time, leading to a ban on family members from the dressing room area. The family also faces intense media scrutiny, with Jude hitting out at the press for hounding them. 

When there is no shortage of venues to choose from, why pick one where the air quality reaches dangerous levels at precisely that time of year?

Sidharth Monga03-Apr-2025When India and South Africa play their second Test there later this year, Guwahati will become the 17th venue to have hosted a Test in India in the last 10 years. It means India has 16 active Test venues that all have excellent facilities except for Green Park in Kanpur, which, last year, struggled to get cricket going even after rain stopped. It won’t happen, but even if we assume Kanpur is blacklisted, the BCCI had 15 options for the first Test of that South Africa series, starting November 14.It takes special apathy and lack of duty of care to still go ahead and schedule this Test in Delhi, where the poor air quality becomes a health emergency in November. On the Air Quality Index (AQI), a reading of over 300 is considered “very poor” and over 400 “severe”. India’s official AQI meters are not designed to measure air that gets so bad that it reaches four digits. On November 18 last year, the AQI officially reached 999. IQAir, a Swiss company that measures air quality, measured Delhi’s AQI on that day at 1600, according to the . It resulted in lockdown-like conditions. People were advised to leave home only in emergency. Schools were shut and outdoor activity barred even when they reopened.The situation in recent years has been so bad that 500 is considered a good day in November when the unholy combination of industrial pollution, vehicular fumes, construction activity, post-Diwali firecracker fumes and the burning of post-harvest stubble in neighbouring states is at play. Delhi’s landlocked geography and unfavourable wind directions make it the perfect storm.Related

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Does the cricket audience matter? Only if they're at home, watching on TV

It is pertinent to avoid athletic activity in that air because the major air pollutant is PM 2.5, particulate matter that is less than 2.5mm in diameter. When we strain during athletic activity, our breathing gets deeper and more rapid, thus eliminating any chance of avoiding inhaling PM 2.5. The Central Pollution Control Board warned in 2017, when the AQI didn’t reach four figures, that running a marathon in those conditions could deposit two tablespoonfuls of toxic ash in your lungs. A Test match is no marathon but it is still elite high-performance athletic activity.To be fair, no Indian should need a refresher on this health emergency because it happens every year. The BCCI shouldn’t need reminding either. Here is a quick timeline of how cricket has been affected in Delhi in the last 10 years.In the first week of November 2016, two Ranji Trophy matches were called off as players “could not even stand outside”.In 2017, Sri Lanka players put on masks to deal with the pollution in Delhi•BCCIIn 2017, Sri Lanka took the field wearing masks in a Test match interrupted by air pollution. The players kept going off the field and vomiting. There were oxygen cylinders in the dressing room. Mohammed Shami and Suranga Lakmal vomited on the field.The ODI between India and Australia in March 2019 went off well, but later that year, on November 3, two Bangladesh players vomited on the field. The then BCCI president Sourav Ganguly tweeted to thank the two teams for playing the game “under tuff [sic] conditions”. ESPNcricinfo understands Ganguly, who had been elected BCCI president only a month earlier, privately expressed displeasure at the scheduling when he read this on November 1.The 2023 ODI World Cup featured four Delhi matches in October, which went off fine, but the one match in November nearly didn’t happen. This being an ICC event, there was at least a chance of the match being called off. Bangladesh skipped practice.And yet, here we are. Of all the gin joints in the world. Three weeks after Diwali. Another Test match that will expose not just the players but also spectators, who are otherwise warned to not leave home unless in an emergency, to life-shortening air pollution.The last time Delhi got a match in November, sources in the BCCI said off the record that matches are allotted to state associations on rotational basis, and that the BCCI can’t cross members who constitute the body in the first place. That doesn’t even begin to explain how Ahmedabad, which hosted England in February 2025, will get two more matches later in the same year.If this Test in Delhi does go ahead, India will have hosted only 14 internationals (two in Ahmedabad) between two matches in Delhi. Even if you restrict it to just Tests, there will have only been 14 India home Tests since the last one in Delhi. By comparison, Eden Gardens last got a Test in November 2019, which is 23 Tests ago. Ahmedabad will have hosted four Tests between the last Eden Gardens Test and the one it is scheduled to host in October against West Indies.These, though, are internal BCCI machinations that a private body should be free to partake in. Even the dismal treatment of fans in India can be seen as the BCCI enjoying the favourable end of the demand-supply stick. The wellbeing of players and spectators, though, is another matter. Cricket South Africa (CSA) will not protest, or cannot protest. There is no player union in India. The South African union can only make an indirect, unthreatening request. “Player well-being must always be the primary concern,” it told ESPNcricinfo. “All stakeholders need to recognise this and act accordingly.”The only entity that can act on this is the BCCI. There are still eight months to go. There is still time to do the right thing and move this Test elsewhere.

Earlier this year, comedian John Oliver announced that he and the staff were seeking a minor league baseball team that would be willing to let them get creative with some branding. The Erie SeaWolves, a Detroit Tigers' Double-A affiliate bravely decided to play ball despite the stipulation that they'd be kept in the dark while Oliver tinkered around with the brand identity. If this all sounds slightly strange, just keep in mind that it's minor league baseball and there are absolutely no bad ideas in any of their brainstorms.

Oliver unveiled what he and his team came up with on Sunday night and there's not a single person on the world—including Erie—that could have predicted it.

The SeaWolves will henceforth be playing as the Erie Moon Mammoths for select games.

Where does a moon mammoth even come from? Per MLB.com:

One need not know or appreciate the backstory here to like the merchandise, which features a top-notch logo.

The Moon Mammoths take the field for the first time on July 19.

On Friday, the rumors became official: Wrigley Field will play host for the MLB All-Star Game in the near future.

After a few months' worth of reports connecting the famous ivy wall to All-Star festivities, commissioner Rob Manfred announced at the ballpark that the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field would host the 2027 All-Star game. It is an exciting time for the city and especially the fans who will get to enjoy Wrigleyville throughout the All-Star week.

The social media account for the ballpark released a video celebrating the occasion shortly after Manfred's announcement.

The 2027 game will mark the fourth All-Star Game the Cubs have hosted, with the three previous occasions coming in 1947, 1962 and 1990. Chicago's game will come on the heels of Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia hosting the 2026 All-Star Game.

Fans and players both have much to look forward to in 2027, as one of MLB's most historic ballparks plays host to All-Star festivities.

NEW YORK — Garrett Crochet recoils at the premise. At 26, after 205 ⅓ innings (most in the American League), 255 strikeouts (most in the majors) and a 2.59 ERA (third in the AL) for the 89-win Red Sox, on the cusp of starting Game 1 of the American League wild-card series against the Yankees, he’s finally the guy he always knew he could be, right?

“Um,” he says quickly. “Becoming it.” 

For starters, he didn’t always know he could be this kind of starter. Not until he began throwing 91 mph as a left-handed high school senior did any Division I programs show interest, and even at Tennessee, he spent half his time pitching in relief. When the White Sox drafted him No. 11 in June 2020 and promoted him to the big-league bullpen three months later, he was just thrilled to be in the majors. So he was not exactly clawing at the walls of the bullpen asking to be unleashed on the rotation. 

“I thought that I could do it,” he says slowly. “I wasn’t sure.”

Even that degree of faith began to feel misplaced. In 2021, he threw 54 ⅓ innings in relief and felt gassed. “And I’m, like, last on my team!” he recalls. He set for himself the goal of hitting 80 or 90 innings in ’22, then putting himself in position for a few spot starts in ’23. “And then I blew out [my elbow],” he says. “It was like, ”

The Chicago brass knew he had the talent to be a frontline starter—a four-seamer that touches 100 mph plus perhaps the best slider in the game will usually play—but they wanted to see if he could develop the stamina. So after he finished rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, they let him spend the winter before the 2024 season stretching out. He was so dominant in spring training that they made him the Opening Day starter—his first major league start. 

“I was just like, ” he recalls. “”

One of the main criticisms of Aaron Judge’s career has been his inability to perform in the postseason––at least by his otherworldly standards. For all the greatness he displays throughout the regular season, putting up video game-like numbers and mashing home runs with relative ease, he simply hasn’t replicated that success in the playoffs.

This postseason, though still without a home run, Judge has looked more like his usual self. But with the Yankees staring down the barrel of a potential early playoff exit, will he have done enough to override the narrative about his vanishing act in October? 

 Aaron Judge’s past playoff struggles

Judge's postseason performances have been far from bad, but his curse is being the Yankees' best player, their captain (a role highly associated with postseason excellence in the 21st century) and a transcendental producer in the regular season. 

His career regular-season OPS is 1.028. In the postseason, that drops all the way to 0.778 (excluding '25). Again, not bad, but Judge has set a standard for himself that is hard to keep up in general, much less in the postseason when the pressure is on and opposing pitchers are bringing their best stuff. 

Frustratingly, Judge has also had some postseason runs where he's gone cold, especially for his standards. In the first three games of the 4 World Series, he mustered just one hit. He got no bases (meaning no hits walks) in the final two games of the '22 ALCS. 

His fielding has generally been good, but in the fifth inning of Game 5 of the World Series, he dropped a catchable fly ball for what would have been a third out, allowing the Dodgers offense to stay on the field. Despite the two outs, Judge’s error was followed by further mistakes, handing the Dodgers an opportunity to erase a five-run deficit that inning in what became L.A.’s closeout game.  

How Judge has performed this postseason

So far this fall, Judge has appeared back to his normal self, for the most part. His OPS in five games this year 1.024, almost perfectly in-line with his career regular season average. The only thing missing is the home run. He has yet to hit one out of the park, a substantial part of his typical offensive repertoire. 

Sometimes in big spots, Judge doesn’t get the to deliver on offense because opposing pitchers won’t give him hittable balls. That’s not been the case overall this postseason, with Judge failing to work a single walk in the first four games before finally registering two in their Game 2 loss to the Blue Jays in the ALDS. 

While he has no glaring offensive struggles to point to, it’s still clear that Judge has not necessarily been his normal, dominant self at the plate. 

Given the fact that he has only struck out twice, that means pitchers are getting him out on batted balls. His exit velocity is down about five miles per hour compared to the ‘25 regular season, his average launch angle down six degrees. His hard hit percentage has dropped from nearly 60% to 38% in this postseason. 

Down 2–0, Judge and Yankees have every opportunity to show up big

The Yankees’ offense fell flat in the first two games of the ALDS, failing to get much of anything going against the Blue Jays. But their chance to grab some momentum in the series is coming, as they return to the Bronx for Game 3 (and potentially Game 4) at Yankee Stadium. 

Historically, in the postseason, Judge has hit substantially better at home than he has on the road. In New York in October, Judge’s OPS (.861) is 140 points higher than it is on the road. He’ll be back in front of a raucous home crowd on Tuesday night, and he’ll know that the team is depending on him to deal some damage.

He could further swing the momentum back in the Yankees’ favor with his first home run of the playoffs, but he’ll be facing a pitcher he’s never recorded a hit against, let alone a homer, in Toronto’s starter Shane Bieber. If Judge truly wants to change the narrative about his postseason performances, and the Yankees want to live to see another day of October baseball, he, along with the rest of the team, has to deliver on Tuesday night.

A West Indian pair, an Australian trio, two Indian batting greats and other game-changing concurrent retirements

Bharath Seervi05-Apr-2020On this day in 1974, two legendary West Indies cricketers played their last day of Test cricket: Garry Sobers and Rohan Kanhai. Here is a look at some of the instances when two or more huge names from the same team played their last Test together.ESPNcricinfo LtdGarry Sobers and Rohan Kanhai – v England, Port of Spain, 1974Sobers and Kanhai held several records for West Indies when they played their last Test: they were the two most experienced players at the time, having played 93 and 79 matches, they were West Indies’ top two run-getters, with 8032 and 6227 runs – Sobers was the overall leader as well – and they were also the pair with the most century partnerships (six). Sobers was also their second-highest wicket-taker behind Lance Gibbs, and was easily the leading allrounder in the game.The last Test wasn’t a memorable one for them, though. Sobers scored 0 and 20, while Kanhai made 2 made 7. West Indies lost the match by 26 runs after Tony Greig’s 13-wicket haul, and the five-match series was drawn 1-1.The loss of these two was obviously huge for West Indies, but their next big names were just around the corner: in the very next series, against India, West Indies handed debuts to Viv Richards and Gordon Greenidge, who went on to rank among their finest batsmen.Greg Chappell, Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh – v Pakistan, Sydney, 1984 The famous Australian trio of the 1970s and ’80s bid adieu to Test cricket after the final game of this five-match series against Pakistan. The retirement of the three left a huge hole in Australian cricket, given that they were the toppers in their respective areas: Chappell was Australia’s highest run-getter with 7110 runs in 87 Tests, while Lillee ended with 355 wickets and Marsh with 355 keeping dismissals, both overall record holders for most wickets and most keeping dismissals in Tests at the time. Chappell was also Australia’s most successful captain and second only to Clive Lloyd at the time.Unlike Sobers and Kanhai, the three Australians had a memorable final Test, achieving significant milestones in that game. Chappell went past Don Bradman’s tally of 6996 runs in his final Test innings of 182. Lillee became the first bowler to take 350 Test wickets with four wickets in each innings, and Rod Marsh played his 96th Test as wicketkeeper, going past Alan Knott’s record for most Tests by a keeper. Between them Lillee and Marsh accounted for 95 dismissals in Tests, which is still a record by a bowler-wicketkeeper combination. Australia won by 10 wickets and Chappell, who was Man of the Match, also achieved the rare distinction of scoring a century in his first and last Test.Their departure obviously hit Australia hard. After the trio’s exit, they lost four successive Test series and did not win any of their next eight series, which included two Ashes series. Before their exit, Australia had just regained the Ashes in the previous season, and had lost only two of their last 10 series.Viv Richards, Malcolm Marshall and Jeff Dujon – v England, The Oval, 1991 They were the three stalwarts of West Indies’ dominant side of the 1980s, and like the Australian trio, they were the team’s leading top run-getter, wicket-taker and wicketkeeper – Richards retired with 8540 runs, Marshall with 376 wickets and Dujon with 272 dismissals. Only Sunil Gavaskar and Allan Border had more runs than Richards, only Richard Hadlee and Ian Botham had more wickets than Marshall and only Rod Marsh had more dismissals than Dujon at the time.Unlike the Australian trio, though, they couldn’t quite finish on a high, as England won that last Test of the series by five wickets to level the series 2-2. In the final Test, Richards scored 2 and 60, Dujon 0 and 5 and Marshall picked up only two wickets. For the first time in seven years, West Indies were asked to follow on by any team, while England enforced their first follow-on over West Indies in 22 years.West Indies, though, had enough depth at the time to continue their winning ways: they had not lost a series since 1978 and they kept that record going till 1995.Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Justin Langer – v England, Sydney, 2007The most successful spinner and the most successful fast bowler, Warne and McGrath, both retired in the same Test along with one of Australia’s finest openers, Langer. It was the first instance of three players, each with more than 100 Tests, retiring in the same match. The occasion was even more special as Australia sealed a comprehensive 5-0 Ashes triumph, winning the fifth Test by 10 wickets. In their final Test, McGrath picked up three wickets in each innings, Warne picked up only two wickets but scored a crucial 71 in the first innings. Langer got 26 runs in the first innings, while in the second he remained not out as his partner hit the winning runs.With Warne, McGrath and Langer in the line-up, Australia had lost only one of their last 16 series – the 2005 Ashes. But after their exit, Australia lost three of their next eight series – one each to India, South Africa and The Ashes. Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq – v West Indies, Roseau, 2017 Seldom have a country’s most successful batsman and most successful captain retired together, as Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq did for Pakistan in 2017.Younis ended his career with 10,099 runs after becoming the only Pakistan batsman to score over 10,000 runs, in his final series. Misbah’s 26 Test wins as a captain are nearly twice as many as any other Pakistan captain, and they lost just one series under Misbah in the UAE. Younis played in 53 of Misbah’s 56 Tests as captain and they were 39 years and 42 years of age respectively at their retirement. After their retirement, Pakistan have won only two of their seven Test series, and have won only four matches out of 16, losing 10. Pakistan still . Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman – v Australia, Adelaide, 2012Two of India’s three most experienced Test players and two of their top four run-scorers played their last Test in Adelaide in 2012.The high point for the two batsmen collectively was obviously their epic 376-run partnership in Kolkata Test, but they also remain the only Indian pair to put together two triple-century partnerships in Tests. At the time of their retirement, only two Indian pairs had more partnership runs than they did.This last series wasn’t memorable for either of them. Dravid scored only 194 runs and Laxman 155, in eight innings each, as India were drubbed 4-0.Other sets of players who played their last Test together after playing 75 or more matches: Ian Botham and Allan Lamb, v Pakistan, Lord’s 1992Graham Gooch and Mike Gatting, v Australia, Perth, 1995Shaun Pollock and Herschelle Gibbs, v West Indies, Durban, 2008AB de Villiers and Morne Morkel, v Australia, Johannesburg, 2018Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn, v Sri Lanka, Port Elizabeth, 2019