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Simon Harmer’s 17 wickets during South Africa’s recent tour of India were the latest in a line of crucial contributions by visiting spinners

Omkar Mankame27-Nov-2025

Simon Harmer

Harmer outbowled India’s spinners by a distance on a tour that redeemed him after his difficult 2015 visit, which had pushed him into a seven-year Test exile. No bowler has taken more wickets at a better average in a Test series in India than his 17 scalps at 8.94. On a raging turner in Kolkata, he sliced through the middle order to prevent India from chasing 124. In Guwahati, he extracted sharp turn and bounce to secure his first five-for in India.

Mitchell Santner

In his only Test of the series, Santner engineered one of the most stunning results in modern Test cricket – winning a Test series in India. Brought in after New Zealand took a 1-0 lead in Bengaluru, the left-arm spinner claimed 13 wickets, including his maiden Test five-for, in the historic triumph. His method relied on subtle changes of pace, often dipping below 87kph to extract greater grip and purchase than India’s own spinners.Related

• Harmer flips Test cricket in India upside down

• South Africa prove again they can win the hard way, and anywhere

• India's Test debacle: outbowled, outbatted and out-tossed too

Ajaz Patel

With Santner absent, Ajaz Patel – having an ordinary series thus far – rediscovered his 2021 magic to seal a 3-0 whitewash in the city of his birth. After lunch on day two, he found his rhythm, bowling a teasing length that forced India’s batters forward without letting them reach the ball adequately. In the second innings, he led New Zealand’s defence of 147 with figures of 6 for 57, including the crucial dismissal of Rishabh Pant, who had threatened to take the game away.

Tom Hartley

Hartley’s Test career began in chaos – two sixes in his first over and bruising figures of 2 for 131 off 25 overs in the first innings. However, he used his high release point to prodigious effect in the second innings: he constantly unsettled seasoned Indian batters and collected 7 for 62, rounding off England’s remarkable comeback win after conceding a 190-run lead.Tom Hartley’s selection was vindicated when he delivered a seven-for against India’s experienced line-up•BCCI

Steve O’Keefe

India hadn’t lost a home Test since 2012, but a three-day defeat in Pune ended that streak. O’Keefe’s twin hauls of 6 for 35 skittled India for 105 and 107, their lowest totals in a home Test defeat. In the first innings, three of his wickets came via outside edges, and one through a stumping. In the second, five of his six dismissals came from attacking the stumps, resulting in bowled or lbws. Australia won by 333 runs.

Monty Panesar and Graeme Swann

After a nine-wicket loss in Ahmedabad, England brought Panesar back in the XI. He responded with a memorable ten-wicket haul in Mumbai, including the twin scalps of Sachin Tendulkar. Panesar and Swann combined for 37 wickets at 25.70, outbowling R Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha, who took 34 at 39.82. Backed by a strong batting effort, the spinners were crucial to England securing their first series win in India in 28 years.

Nicky Boje

Playing just his second Test, the left-arm spinner delivered a match-shaping all-round performance to seal South Africa’s maiden Test series win in India. Sent in as a nightwatcher, he frustrated India with a gritty 85. His confidence carried into the bowling innings, where he removed India’s top three and added two more lower-order wickets to complete a decisive five-for.

Saqlain Mushtaq

At the peak of his powers, Saqlain dominated this unforgettable two-Test series. In Chennai, he won the decisive battle against Sachin Tendulkar, as India fell 12 runs short. In Delhi, he took his second ten-wicket match haul in the running, though Kumble’s iconic 10 for 74 overshadowed it. Across four successive five-fors, Saqlain’s doosra repeatedly deceived the likes of Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Mohammad Azharuddin and Sourav Ganguly – some of the finest batters against spin.

Australia find themselves outgunned by visitors’ five-man pace attack on fire-and-brimstone opening day

Vithushan Ehantharajah21-Nov-20250:43

Carse: Each England fast bowler offers a different skill

As coy as England were leading into this first Ashes Test, announcing a 12-man squad featuring Shoaib Bashir, they confirmed at the toss what everyone, including Australia, knew. They were going all in on pace.This, of course, was not a decision made overnight, for a deck at the Optus Stadium pegged as the quickest they would grace over these five Tests. Nor was it made in the last week after Mark Wood was passed fit.Technically, they have been all in since the start of the 2024 summer, when Rob Key – and we’re paraphrasing here – said relying on traditional English seamers was hot trash in overseas conditions, and change needed to come quick. That change was forcing James Anderson into retirement. But even the axing of a great only confirmed the concept.Related

• 'Drawing a long bow' – Greenberg defends Khawaja's golf after back spasm causes chaos

• Bareknuckle Baz-brawl produces Ashes all-nighter for the ages

• Stats – Stokes and Starc lead the charge as wickets tumble in Perth

• Carse hails 'phenomenal' Stokes as captain inspires England fightback

• Fast-forward Brook sets tempo in thrilling Ashes curtain-raiser

Because deep down, not even the most optimistic mind within the ECB would have believed a day like this would come, and certainly not in this manner. When England, with the fastest attack on show, pushed Australia back, not just deep into their creases – the home batters were camped on the back foot for 66% of the deliveries faced so far – but behind a game they were running. On a day where 19 wickets fell, England’s batters served up arguably their most dispiriting batting performance of the Bazball era when it mattered most and still ended up 49 runs ahead at stumps.Had Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood been on the park, that buffer would have been a deficit. Mitchell Starc’s brilliant seven-for was set against little help from those around him.On the other side of the fence was a specialist foursome of Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Wood and Brydon Carse, dovetailing so well they returned to the away dressing room knackered but on cloud nine, after Stokes led them off in a hurry, sheepish after profiting from their hard work to nab the final five wickets. Remarkably, as the slowest of the five, Stokes’ top speed was still above 85mph/137mph.It was only Archer and Carse who took wickets. The former knocking debutant Jake Weatherald off his feet with a 92mph/148kph inswinger second ball of Australia’s innings, and then eliciting a satisfying “under-elbow” from Marnus Labuschagne. The latter turning Steve Smith inside out – feet in Athens, hands in America – before ripping out Usman Khawaja with a bouncer that sent the left-hander back early after a delayed entrance.Ben Stokes looked a little sheepish leading his players off•Gareth Copley/Getty ImagesAtkinson, though, was impressively sharp, tying down his own end while jagging the ball every which way. Three maidens to start a four-over opening spell maintained the pressure Archer had created, before smothering the usually rampant Travis Head, Atkinson responsible for 14 of the 24 dots Head was forced to eat. Stokes saw Head off – attempting to fashion a leg-side boundary – then bagged Cameron Green, who Atkinson should have had earlier with a return catch. That drop was followed, five balls later, by a hellacious Wood bouncer that clocked Green on the jaw.As Archer, Carse, Atkinson and Wood walked off, a thought crossed their mind – had they ever been involved in a better bowling performance? Certainly not as individuals as part of a cartel. And definitely not together.Despite collaborating on England’s famous World Cup win in 2019, this is only the second Test match Archer and Wood have played together. Even Atkinson and Carse have now featured together in five, having both debuted in 2024, though it is a quirk of their circumstances around fitness that all have been overseas. And yet, you’d be forgiven for thinking they were all thick as thieves, as familiar with each other’s games as Australia’s legendary trio.Even Stokes, who revved up his bowlers for the mini-session before tea. After 10 overs, Australia went into the interval on 15 for 1.”At the halfway mark Stokesy kept it quite simple,” Carse said. “He said we’ve got 50 minutes before tea, and I thought the way that Gus and Jofra started was phenomenal and we carried that into the [evening] session. I thought we were quite relentless as a group of seamers, and Ben rotated us well.Brydon Carse charges off after removing Steven Smith•Getty Images”I think when you have Mark Wood and Jofra Archer in your line-up they’re always nice bowlers to have. There was pace and bounce throughout the day, especially when the ball was still slightly new.”Our group of bowlers, we bounce off each other. We all have slightly different attributes, and keeping it relatively simple, I think that’s stood us in good stead today.”None of this is coincidence, of course. Stokes, Key and head coach Brendon McCullum are suckers for the sharp stuff, and the ECB depth chart of quicks has never been longer or more informed. Carse himself was the beneficiary of a new approach to opt for players on an “attributes over averages” basis. Following his 2 for 45, a Test average of 29.71 is over three points lower than his competitive first-class average for Durham (32.82).They have invested heavily, too, particularly in Archer and Wood, pouring money into their respective recoveries from a number of potentially career-ending injuries and keeping them sweet enough to not need nectars from the global T20 circuit.It is a luxury Australia also flex with Cummins, Hazlewood and Starc. Just last month, for instance, Cummins rejected a near $10 million a year offer to go all-in on franchise cricket.Among all this, it is worth remembering Test matches are not won on the first day, and definitely not Ashes series. But England should allow themselves a moment of joy.Having come to Australia and been comprehensively outgunned so often, day one showed they might finally be equipped with heavy artillery.

On a historic night for Scottish football that ended what will be come next summer a 28-year absence from the World Cup, Scott McTominay scored the best goal of his career by launching himself into the air to set the tone for a crunch qualifier against Denmark in Glasgow. The Napoli midfielder and reigning Serie A Player of the Year is having the time of his life for both club and country right now.

• McTominay gets the party started at Hampden Park

  Scotland knew that a win over Denmark at Hampden Park would secure them World Cup qualification for the first time this century, since 1998. McTominay could hardly have given Steve Clarke's side a better start, acrobatically putting his country into the lead in the third minute. Ben Gannon-Doak's cross was so inviting for the overhead kick, reminiscent of Cristiano Ronaldo in the Champions League for Real Madrid against Juventus in 2018, that McTominay soared into the air and lashed the ball into the net.

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• Scotland qualify for the 2026 World Cup

  The game was far from over, though. Denmark equalised just shy of the hour mark through Rasmus Hojlund, McTominay's Napoli team-mate and former Manchester United colleague, from the penalty spot. A draw wouldn't have been enough for Scotland to qualify automatically, with a point all that Denmark needed to book their place instead. So, the Scots were buoyed when, after Rasmus Kristensen was sent off, substitute Lawrence Shankland restored the lead. But another Danish equaliser came almost immediately courtesy of Patrick Dorgu that threatened to shunt Scotland into the play-offs. Yet when Kieran Tierney restored the Scottish lead for the third time and then Kenny McLean, who'd replaced the injured Gannon-Doak in the first half, added a fourth goal, it was pandemonium.

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  McTominay for the Puskas Award?

  Having missed the cut-off date for 2025, which passed in August, McTominay has given himself an early chance of winning the 2026 Puskas Award. It is the prize given to the scorer of the most beautiful goal each year, and McTominay’s effort has added meaning and symbolism because of its setting and context, as well as being an absolute banger of a strike.

  He, of course, faces immediate competition from Tottenham Hotspur defender Micky van de Ven, whose recent Champions League goal is also already earmarked as a contender in 2026. The Dutch centre-back ran pretty much the length of the pitch at searing pace against Copenhagen, before finishing with aplomb. It mirrored a previous Puskas Award-winning strike from Son Heung-min, so there is precedent for solo efforts getting the required votes.

  But who can argue against an overhead kick?

Thomas Frank has enjoyed an impressive start to his tenure at Tottenham Hotspur, only losing three of his first 14 competitive games in charge of the club.

However, many fans still aren’t convinced by the Dane, especially after the defeat against Newcastle United in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night.

The 51-year-old only made four changes to his starting eleven, but one of which proved to be a huge mistake – with Mohammed Kudus dropping down to the substitutes bench.

The Ghanaian has been the Lilywhites’ shining light in 2025/26, as seen by his tally of one goal and four assists within his first nine Premier League outings.

Such creativity was hugely lacking against the Magpies, with the £55m leaving the responsibility down to one of the other big-money names to move to North London this summer.

Xavi Simons’ best game in a Tottenham shirt

After spending £52m on the signature of attacking midfielder Xavi Simons, huge excitement was generated within the Spurs fanbase – but it’s safe to say he’s failed to live up to such expectations.

The Dutch international has registered just one assist and failed to score a single goal in any of his 11 outings, further backing up his lack of impact in North London.

However, his showing against Newcastle was arguably one of his best for the club, with Frank finally starting to utilise the 22-year-old in his natural attacking midfield role.

Simons featured for the entirety of the defeat, subsequently creating three chances for his teammates – but none of which resulted in a goal for Frank’s men.

Richarlison was often the man on the end of his chances, but the Brazilian’s wasteful nature was highlighted in his own tally of two big chances missed.

There’s no doubt he’s been unlucky during his opening few months in England, but the manager can certainly solve such an issue during the next couple of matches.

The Spurs player who can finally get Simons firing

In Spurs’ nine Premier League matches throughout 2025/26, the side have already netted 17 goals – subsequently averaging nearly two goals per game in England’s top-flight.

The goals have been spread around the first-team squad, as seen by centre-back Micky Van de Ven’s tally of three goals, which puts him joint-top of the goalscoring charts.

Richarlison has also netted the same number of goals, but has been called into question over the last few weeks for his inability to find the back of the net.

The Brazilian has failed to score in any of his last eight outings for the Lilywhites, often being wasteful within the final third – as seen by his misses against the Magpies.

Dominic Solanke has been unavailable over recent months due to an ankle issue, with Frank needing to hand fellow centre-forward Randal Kolo Muani the chance to impress.

The Frenchman joined on a season-long loan from PSG on deadline day, but has only started one game to date as he builds up match fitness after a stop-start pre-season.

However, despite his minutes off the substitutes bench, the 26-year-old has still demonstrated glimpses of his quality, which could see him handed a needed run of games as a regular starter.

He was even brought on with 25 minutes remaining at St James’ Park earlier this week, making an immediate impact with his direct run through the midfield, halted by referee Chris Kavanagh.

Kolo Muani, who’s been dubbed “phenomenal” by one analyst, may have failed to score for the Lilywhites to date, but his temporary spells elsewhere have showcased his clinical nature.

He scored 10 goals in just 22 appearances with Juventus last campaign, even managing to put 55% of the shots he took on target – highlighting his accuracy in front of goal.

Such numbers would allow Simons to increase his own tallies in North London, with his incredible defence splitting passes falling into the path of a clinical talisman.

Creativity has been the Dutchman’s strong point prior to his move to England, but it’s been massively neglected given Richarlison’s inability to find the back of the net.

However, that could all be about to change if Frank decides to start Kolo Muani, with the pair having the talent to make the 2025/26 campaign one to remember for the Lilywhites.

Forget Kudus: Spurs star is rapidly becoming one of the "best in the world"

Tottenham Hotspur now have a world-class talent on their books under Thomas Frank.

By
Ethan Lamb

Oct 29, 2025

Erling Haaland became the fastest player ever to score 100 Premier League goals as he struck the opening goal in Manchester City's epic 5-4 win at Fulham on Tuesday. The Norwegian hitman reached a century of goals in 111 games, smashing Alan Shearer's previous record of 100 strikes in 124 matches.

• Haaland brings up PL century versus Fulham

  Haaland went into the match failing to score in successive games for the first time this season following blanks at Newcastle and against Leeds, having also not struck as a substitute in the Champions League against Bayer Leverkusen. But, after hitting the post with a clear opening early in the game, he ended his mini-drought by finding the net in the 17th minute at Craven Cottage to write yet another page in the Premier League history books.

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  Haaland the 35th player to score 100 PL goals

  Haaland lashed in a cut-back from Jeremy Doku with his favoured left foot to break the deadlock against Fulham, scoring for the seventh time in seven games against the Cottagers. He is only the 35th player to reach 100 Premier League goals. And given that he is only 25 and has a contract with City until 2034, he is well placed to join Wayne Rooney, Harry Kane and Alan Shearer as the only players to have scored 200 or more Premier League goals. 

• 'Nice to join 100 club'

  It was an unforgettable night for Haaland and City, and not just because of the 100th goal. City marched into a 5-1 lead early in the second half thanks to two goals from Phil Foden, one from Tijjani Reijnders and an own goal by Sander Berge but then conceded three times to set up an enthralling finish. They eventually clung on to take all three points.

  "It's huge and I'm really proud. It's a massive thing, the 100 club is a nice thing to be in and I'm happy," Haaland told . "I knew about it, that's what I tried to do. I try to help the team scoring goals, that's my job. Every game is a different game, you can't think of the game that's been, you need to focus on what's ahead. 

  "The reality is we lost against Newcastle and Leverkusen but now we have two in a row and we have to keep going. I think if you're sitting at home now you enjoyed that game. It was a crazy game, nine goals is a lot. In the end, we win and we're happy but it's not the best win."

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  Shearer believes Haaland will break all-time PL record

  Haaland wrote Premier League history by scoring 36 goals in his very first season with City, beating Alan Shearer and Andy Cole's tally of 34 strikes in a single campaign which had stood for 28 years.

  And the former Newcastle and Blackburn Rovers striker, who celebrated when second-top scorer Kane left for Bayern Munich in 2023 as it meant his record was safe, is resigned to the fact that the Norwegian will eventually usurp him as the league's record marksman.

  "Yes, Haaland is the perfect centre-forward. His record is phenomenal, appetite to score is fantastic. I love it," Shearer, who scored 260 Premier League goals, told "He’s quick, strong, agile, he reacts quicker than most around the six-yard box which is impressive and his ability to put the ball in the back of the net is magnificent.  

  "Haaland could definitely break my Premier League goal record. There’s no doubt that if he does another seven or eight years, maybe even less then he’ll have a brilliant chance of breaking it. But there’s so many ifs and different things that could happen to that."

  Asked about toppling Shearer's all-time record, Haaland said: "I know about it but I don't think too much about it."

The Texas Rangers and San Diego Padres kicked off a weekend series at Petco Park on Friday.

With one out in the bottom of the 5th inning, Trenton Brooks hit a ball off the wall in right field. Right fielder Adolis Garcia fielded the ball off one bounce and made a good throw to second base, but Brooks beat the tag of Corey Seager.

Then he popped up.

The Rangers challenged the play and it was confirmed that Seager had kept the tag on him as he levitated above the bag. It almost doesn't seem fair when you consider middle infielders are allowed the latitude of the "neighborhood play," an unwritten rule widely accepted to the point where MLB.com has a page defining it.

This is the second time this happened this season. In April a game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Texas Rangers ended when Wyatt Langford stole second, but was called out because he popped off the bag.

“Whenever we needed a breakthrough, she was there for the team,” Harmanpreet Kaur says of Kranti Goud, whose six-wicket haul helped India defend 318 in the deciding ODI against England

Valkerie Baynes23-Jul-2025Ten balls had gone – and Harmanpreet Kaur was counting – before she scored her first run, the first of 102 that would set the platform for India’s series-clinching victory against England and lay down a marker ahead of the home ODI World Cup.On the 11th ball she faced at Chester-le-Street in the third and final ODI, Harmanpreet found the boundary with a gorgeous cover drive off left-arm spinner Linsey Smith and, while it was slow-going at first, she was on her way.Harmanpreet’s century was her seventh in ODIs but her first score above 50 in the format in 13 innings. Since scoring 54 in the 50-over warm-up match against an ECB Development XI at the start of the tour, her best score in either of the white-ball series against England had been 26 in the fourth T20I.Related

• Goud's emergence and Harmanpreet's century the big plusses for in-form India

• Harmanpreet century, Goud six-for seal 2-1 series win for India

• How Goud's need for speed found her a place with UP Warriorz

“In all the matches I wanted to give my best in batting but today’s game was very important to us,” she said. “The plan was to spend some time on the wicket and then see how things go. That really worked for me.”The first [ten] balls, I didn’t get any runs but then I was just talking to myself: ‘I’m not going to lose myself, just be there, be there for the team’.”By reaching a hundred in 82 deliveries, Harmanpreet surpassed her 87-ball effort against South Africa last year as the second-fastest for her country in women’s ODIs after Smriti Mandhana’s century off 70 balls against Ireland earlier this year. She also became the third India player to pass 4000 runs in women’s ODIs in the process.Also satisfying for India was their all-round batting performance, which also included 50 for Jemimah Rodrigues, who put on 110 runs for the fourth wicket with Harmanpreet, 45 each for Mandhana and Harleen Deol, and an 18-ball 38 from Richa Ghosh.Kranti Goud struck twice in the first powerplay on her way to a six-wicket haul•PA Photos/Getty Images

Then Kranti Goud, the 21-year-old seamer playing her fifth match for India, took 6 for 52 as England were bowled out for 305 with one ball remaining, 13 runs shy of achieving a world-record run-chase. Goud became the second-youngest India player behind Deepti Sharma to take a five-wicket haul in women’s ODIs.”She’s been really impressing whenever she was on the field and bowling for the team,” Harmanpreet said of Goud. “I’m really happy the kind of bowling she did today and whenever we needed a breakthrough, she was there for the team.”India’s 318 for 5 was the second-highest ODI score by a visiting team in England after their 333 for 5 in Canterbury in 2022. It was also the fifth time India had scored 300 or more in ODIs this year.Tuesday’s narrow winning margin belied India’s dominance in the match, although allowing England to go from 8 for 2 to 170 for 2 as Nat Sciver-Brunt and Emma Lamb added 162 runs together will act as a reminder that the World Cup hosts cannot give any ground to their opponents.India can expect a sterner test from reigning champions Australia, whom they will play in a three-match ODI series immediately before the World Cup. But Harmanpreet said her team would take confidence from their tour of England, which also included a 3-2 victory in the T20I series.There will be sterner tests ahead, but India can celebrate the double in England for the moment•Getty Images

“Today was a totally different situation and different pitch, different atmosphere, in home conditions it will be different,” she said. “But whenever you win, that can always give you a positive mindset and keep you in a good place.”This series definitely will give us a lot of confidence but, again, when we go back, we have to start again from ball one.”She was also pleased that her team were hitting good form at the right time.”Our team has been really working hard for so many years and this is the time where we are getting that [reward],” she said. “We only talk about playing good cricket and we know the kind of talent we have in our side. It’s only about using the right talent at right time and getting the best out of them.”I’m really happy. All the girls, they’re coming up with a positive mindset and working really hard on their fitness. We have understood a lot of things in the past few years and right now we’re just trying to pass that benchmark and set ourselves into that position where people can talk about women’s cricket. People can take a women’s cricket really seriously back home because we all know how much people love cricket back home, and they also want us to do well.”

Also, who was the fastest bowler to 300 Test wickets by time?

Steven Lynch29-Oct-2024New Zealand have just won a Test series in India. Have they ever done that before, and how often have India been whitewashed at home? asked Michael O’Sullivan from New Zealand

New Zealand had never previously won any of their 12 Test series in India, and indeed had won only two previous Tests there – in Nagpur in October 1969, and in Mumbai in November 1988. That first win enabled them to draw the series 1-1, and a two-match rubber in 2003-04 was drawn 0-0; India won the other ten. New Zealand have done much better at home, winning six series (and ten Tests overall).India might have lost the series after their defeat in Pune, but there’s still another Test to come so it’s too early to talk about a whitewash. The only time they have ever lost every match of a series (more than one Test) at home was in 1999-2000, when South Africa won both matches. They did lose three-match series 2-0 to England in 1933-34 (the first Tests in India), Australia in 1956-57 and West Indies in 1966-67. As this list shows, India have lost three matches in five longer series at home, which included 3-0 defeats to West Indies in 1958-59 (five Tests) and 1983-84 (six).I saw that Kagiso Rabada was the fastest to reach 300 Test wickets in terms of balls bowled, but who got there fastest by time? asked Andy Johnson from England

You’re right that Kagiso Rabada was the fastest to reach 300 Test wickets by balls bowled – he got there when he dismissed Mushfiqur Rahim during South Africa’s recent Test against Bangladesh in Mirpur. That wicket came with Rabada’s 11,817th legal delivery in a Test, 132.3 overs quicker than Waqar Younis (12,602), who himself was three balls quicker than Dale Steyn.The fastest in terms of time was Shane Warne, who got there in six years and three days from his debut against India in Sydney in January 1992. R Ashwin ran Warne close, reaching 300 in November 2017, six years and 21 days after his debut. Rabada played his first Test in November 2015, so is well down this particular list, in 15th place.Was Zimbabwe’s 344 the other day a T20 international record? asked Burton Mugambwa from Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe ran up 344 for 4 in their match against Gambia in Nairobi last week, during the African qualifying tournament for the next T20 World Cup. It was not only the highest in a T20 international, but the biggest in any senior men’s T20 match, beating Nepal’s 314 for 3 against Mongolia in the Asian Games in Hangzhou (China) in September 2023. As mentioned two weeks ago in this column, there have been higher totals in women’s T20 internationals.Zimbabwe won by 290 runs, another record for men’s T20s, beating Nepal’s 273 in the match mentioned above. Argentina’s women won successive games against Chile in October 2023 by 364, 281 and 311 runs.Sikandar Raza reached his century – Zimbabwe’s first in T20s – against Gambia in just 33 balls, putting him joint-second in men’s T20 internationals behind Sahil Chauhan’s 27-ball onslaught for Estonia against Cyprus in Episkopi in June 2024. That’s also the fastest in all men’s T20 matches.Sydney Barnes’ 189 wickets came in just 27 Tests, an average of seven wickets a Test•PA PhotosPrabath Jayasuriya currently has 97 wickets in 16 Tests – that’s more than six a match. Has anyone else had a higher average? asked Nishantha de Silva from Sri Lanka

Slow left-armer Prabath Jayasuriya currently averages 6.06 wickets per Test, a rate he’ll have to sustain for a long time to stay ahead of Muthiah Muralidaran, who took 800 wickets in his 133-Test career, at the rate of 6.01 per match.Leading the way is the great England bowler Sydney Barnes, who took 189 wickets in just 27 Tests, an average of exactly seven per match. Among those who took 50 or more Test wickets, the only others above six are three 19th-century bowlers in Jack Ferris (6.77 wickets per Test), Tom Richardson (6.28) and George Lohmann (6.22). Lohmann is the only man to have more wickets after 16 Tests (101) than Jayasuriya’s 97.The only other current bowler who averages more than five wickets per Test is R Ashwin, who stood at 5.12 per match after the second Test against New Zealand in Pune.Saim Ayub opened the batting and the bowling in Rawalpindi. How often has this happened in a Test? asked Abdul Hameed Majeed from Pakistan

Offspinner Saim Ayub took the new ball for Pakistan in the third Test against England in Rawalpindi – a one-over spell before Noman Ali returned! He’d earlier opened the batting, and became the 70th man to do both in the same Test. There are now 154 instances in all, and two Indian allrounders lead the way: Manoj Prabhakar did it no fewer than 22 times, and ML Jaisimha 13. Next come Pakistan’s Mudassar Nazar (nine times) and Abid Ali of India (six).The most recent instance before Saim Ayub was by Solomon Mire, for Zimbabwe against West Indies in Bulawayo late in 2017; the previous year Dilruwan Perera did it for Sri Lanka against Australia in Colombo. Perhaps the most surprising name on the list is another Indian, Budhi Kunderan, against England at Edgbaston in July 1967 – he was usually a wicketkeeper!Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

In search of a consistent goalscorer, Tottenham Hotspur are now reportedly preparing a £40m+ offer to sign Georges Mikautadze from Villarreal in 2026.

The great weakness in Thomas Frank’s side this season has been their goalscoring struggles. With Dominic Solanke yet to return to full fitness, the likes of Richarlison and Randal Kolo Muani have struggled to truly take hold of the starting role – handing the Lilywhites a frustrating problem.

Kolo Muani has particularly struggled since arriving from Paris Saint-Germain and is still searching for his first Tottenham goal. With the North London derby against Arsenal up next, however, the forward has been passed fit and has the perfect opportunity to find the back of the net for the first time in the Premier League.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the Arsenal game, Frank revealed early team news which included an update on Kolo Muani’s unexpected return to action after suffering a jaw injury before the break.

If the PSG loanee continues his run without a goal, then many around North London will be asking big questions. Tottenham chiefs are already reportedly searching for a striker and the Frenchman’s struggles could accelerate their plan to welcome La Liga star Mikautadze in 2026.

Tottenham readying Mikautadze offer

According to reports in Spain, Tottenham are now preparing a €50m (£44m) offer to sign Mikautadze from Villarreal in 2026. A player who’s been compared to the great Diego Forlan by Spanish media, the 25-year-old has shown glimpses of his best form so far this season – scoring five goals in 14 games – and has entered Spurs’ radar as a result.

Tottenham's eye-watering 'initial offer' for Rodrygo after contacting Florentino Perez

Spurs reportedly mean business.

By
Emilio Galantini

Nov 21, 2025

After becoming a transfer flop at Ajax, the Georgian striker reinvented himself at FC Metz, before starring at Lyon to earn a summer switch to Villarreal. Now, he could be about to make the biggest move of his career courtesy of Tottenham.

Dubbed “superb” by scout Jacek Kulig, Mikautadze has only kicked on since then to attract the interest of the Premier League. As Tottenham’s forwards continue to struggle, the 25-year-old should be seen as a serious option to consider next year.

Tottenham eyeing 'dream' move for striker likened to Diego Costa after Frank request

Spinner revealed last week that England had released him from his deal after Ashes omission

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Nov-2025Jack Leach has signed a contract extension with Somerset after revealing that he has been released from his England central contract.Leach has played 39 Tests for England, most recently on their tour to Pakistan a year ago, and was the only spinner to take 50 County Championship wickets this season. But he has slipped down the pecking order to the extent that England have opted to take the allrounder Will Jacks to Australia as their back-up spin option ahead of him.He has been centrally contracted since the start of the 2021-22 winter but will fall back onto his county deal with Somerset next year. Leach was already under contract with his hometown club until the end of next season, but the county announced on Monday that he has now signed a two-year extension until the end of 2028.Related

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England have not yet announced their central contracts for 2025-26, but Leach told the BBC last week that he had been informed by managing director Rob Key that his deal would not be renewed. “My contract was up, so he obviously told me that and at the same time, said about the Ashes squad and that I wasn’t going to be in it,” Leach said.”I was gutted about that. That was really my aim for the summer, and it wasn’t to be, so [now] it’s time to reflect and try to keep getting better and get myself back in there… I don’t know from their point of view whether they have completely moved past me, but I believe I’m still getting better and I need to keep showing that in county cricket.”Shoaib Bashir, who has leapfrogged Leach to become England’s first-choice spinner, is widely expected to leave Somerset after he did not feature for them in any format this season. He is likely to retain his central contract for 2025-26, meaning that the ECB – rather than whichever county he joins – will pay his salary.Elsewhere, Sussex have announced the signing of batting allrounder Jack Leaning from Kent on a three-year contract, while legspinning allrounder Calvin Harrison has signed a permanent deal with Northamptonshire after impressing on loan from Nottinghamshire earlier this year.