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Former West Indies fast bowler hopes to instill in the squad a sense of the pride with which they dominated cricket in the past

Cricinfo staff06-Nov-2009Former West Indies fast bowler Joel Garner, recently appointed team manager for the tour to Australia, has said he hopes to instill in the squad a sense of the pride with which they dominated world cricket in the past. Garner, also a West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) director and president of the Barbados Cricket Association, will travel with the side to Australia for their three-Test tour of Australia.”There are some things that are non-negotiable, things like discipline, punctuality and I think that players know and understand that there are some things that are not negotiable, the way we approach our cricket, the way how we train, all of those things will come back into force,” he said.”The West Indies team that we had that was a good West Indies team of the 70s and 80s was not all talent. We were successful because we worked hard and we took the time out to do the things that were right and to bring the cricket up.”Garner aimed to make a difference on the tour in an attempt to revive West Indies cricket whichhas faltered, more especially over the past two decades, through weak leadership and general mismanagement. “I’m looking at bring back some of those values that made us great, back into the team,” he said. “The first thing you have to do is start talking and let them understand what it takes to get to the top. You don’t just really want to make the squad, you want to make the team and you want to keep working, you want to keep performing.”Chris Gayle was recently reappointed to lead the team, marking the end of the contractual dispute between the striking players and the WICB. Garner said the time had come to forget the bitter contractual row and strive to put West Indies back at the top of the cricketing map.”What is happening in world cricket [is[ there are divisions where you have four or five world teams who are at the top and they want to go it alone and they want to play more cricket between themselves because they have the bargaining power,” he said. “We have to understand we have to get from the position of number eight to be in those top four to be a force to be reckoned with in world cricket.”The time to put aside all the nonsense [has come] and [we have] to look forward in a positive way. If you are only going to come to the party and not participate in the party then you’re in the wrong sport.”Senior players such as Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Dwayne Bravo also returned to the squad for the three-Test series following the strike, while youngsters such as Adrian Barath, Kemar Roach and Gavin Tonge made the cut as well. For Garner, 56, one challenge was to ensure team unity.”We have a challenging period ahead with the merging of the fellows who played during the strike and those fellows who were on strike,” he said. “It is going to be a challenge to sort of get everything working smoothly and get them to play competitive cricket while we are in Australia.”That’s what is going to take most of the time and when we talk about the players who were playing and those who went on strike, this is where they need to understand they need to move on. We have to look at the future of West Indies cricket we have to look at what is happening in world cricket.”

Aston Villa midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka isn’t any closer to signing a new deal at Villa Park.

That’s according to The Athletic’s Gregg Evans, with a number of supporters unhappy at the news on social media.

The 18-year-old’s current contract runs until 2023, however, he hasn’t featured in the last seven Premier League games following his full debut against Brentford back in August.

Dean Smith had an ideal opportunity to hand Chukwuemeka more top-flight minutes during the 4-1 defeat to West Ham on Sunday.

Fellow youngster Jacob Ramsey had to be replaced following a collision with Tomas Soucek, however, Smith opted for versatile wing-back Ashley Young from the bench over Chukwuemeka, a more natural midfielder.

Evans claimed in a story on Wednesday that the teenage attacking midfielder is no closer to penning new terms in the Midlands, labelling it as ‘no surprise’.

Villa fans react

@villareport relayed Evans’ claim on Chukwuemeka on Twitter on Wednesday. This is what these Villa fans had to say in reply, with many placing the blame on the club and not the player and one labelling it as ‘disappointing’.

“Sigh what is happening to my club”

Credit: @utvaidan

“hate this club”

Credit: @catrinavfc

“Thanks for ruining my day”

Credit: @avfcdannn

“This is disappointing and we need to get Chuk signed up asap. Such a talent.”

Credit: @reel_villan

“Don’t blame him a single bit. For some reason he was sitting on the bench the whole game when we needed a CM sub in the first half, when we subbed on a 37 year old wing back on instead of Carney.”

Credit: @rico_chong

“If we lose him bc of Smiths inability to make good subs, I will change sport entirely”

Credit: @JoeAVFC_

“No positive news coming out of the club at the minute!”

Credit: @JamieDorman96

“This isn’t good”

Credit: @DomTheOmnic

In other news: ‘Source close to him has told us’ – Sky Sports drop news involving manager contacted by Villa. 

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Chaminda Vaas has denied claims from Asantha de Mel, Sri Lanka’s chief selector, that he had retired from Test cricket. “I have not made any such decision yet,” Vaas told Cricinfo. He also denied having spoken to de Mel or any other selector regarding his plans.Earlier today AFP reported de Mel as saying: “Chaminda has told me he does not want to play Test cricket anymore, but he will continue in the shorter formats.”The news comes a day after Sri Lanka’s new captain, Kumar Sangakkara, strongly suggested that Vaas – overlooked for the two Tests against Pakistan – would give up at least one form of the game. “I had a very good one-on-one chat with him [Vaas] before we went for the Twenty20 world Cup. There is no doubt about the quality of Vaas what he has done for Sri Lankan cricket,” Sangakkara had said in Galle.”He has still got a role to play in our side. We just have to decide which format of the game he is going to make the most most contribution in, and with his fitness and age how best can he divide his time if he decides to play more than one form of the game. But definitely, going forward, there is a World Cup. He is going to be a big part of our side.”Vaas, 35, has picked up 354 wickets in 110 Tests. He had previously said he had his sights set on the 2011 World Cup.

The nominees for the 2009 Zimbabwe Cricket Awards have been announced

Cricinfo staff17-Jul-2009The nominees for the 2009 Zimbabwe Cricket Awards have been announced, with captain Prosper Utseya, Ray Price, Tawanda Mupariwa and HamiltonMasakadza vying to be named Cricketer of the Year.A panel of 15 judges, including ZC administrators, selectors and members of the media, met in Harare on July 15 to deliberate over the candidates in a variety of award categories. The awards recognize achievements attained during the 2008-09 season which ended in March.”The annual awards were created to pay special tribute to the leading cricketers of the day and honor those who have played a significant role in administering and developing the sport in Zimbabwe”, said a board spokesperson.ZC will also use the ceremony to reveal the names and corporate identities of the recently-launched franchises. “There has been much anticipation about how the new franchises will be branded and invited guest will be the first to get a sneak peek at how each of the five franchises will be represented in the coming season,” the spokesman added.

Swing turned Mitchell Johnson from a good bowler to a menacing one in South Africa and the early signs are positive that he can find movement in England

Cricinfo staff16-Jun-2009It was swing that turned Mitchell Johnson from a good bowler to a menacing one in South Africa and the early signs are positive that he can find movement in England. Johnson has been practicing with Duke balls in Leicester and has already found threatening late curve.”What we’ve noticed is we have used the same ball for two long sessions now and we’re still getting the ball to swing, so that’s a good sign,” Johnson told the . “It’s good to see the ball swinging around.”As much as his new-found inswing to the right-handers, it was Johnson’s all-round game that made him such an asset in South Africa. He began the series with a highly entertaining unbeaten 96 at the Wanderers and finished with his first Test century in Cape Town and now finds himself being mentioned in the same breath as the allrounder Andrew Flintoff, who destroyed Australia in 2005.”To be put in the same sort of bracket as those guys is pretty exciting for me, because I never would have thought I would be,” Johnson said. “I think maybe once you keep hearing that name, allrounder, all the time, it might put a bit more pressure on me, but I think the type of person I am I probably don’t let it get to me too much. I just try and keep everything really simple.”Australia’s coach Tim Nielsen believes Johnson will go a long way to deciding the series and, although nobody in the Australian camp has specifically said it, he is the only fast man guaranteed a start in the first Test. Peter Siddle would be unlucky to miss out after impressing against South Africa at home and away, while Ben Hilfenhaus is an incumbent and will swing the ball.That leaves Brett Lee and Stuart Clark as the old warriors trying to fight their way back into the line-up after injury lay-offs and they have two warm-up games to push their cases. Clark flew out from Sydney to join the squad on Monday and he believes the selectors will make their call only after the tour matches.”I’m not sure they’ll go down the path of blokes getting rewarded for wickets,” Clark said in the . “It will be about displaying certain qualities of your bowling style, which is going to be important come the Test matches.”If I bowl well and don’t get any wickets that probably won’t rule me out. There will be a real understanding of what’s happening. We all want to get wickets; someone will get wickets and someone won’t. Given that you’re bowling well, I think you’re just as good a chance as anyone.”Adding to the selection quandary is the expectation that the pitch for the first Test in Cardiff will offer spin, enhancing Nathan Hauritz’s chances of taking one of the available bowling slots. However, Clark was not convinced that a turning surface would hurt the hopes of the seamers.”I’m very hesitant to start jumping at shadows there, whether the wicket is going to be turning or not,” he said. “It’s been like that in county games, but I’ve also played county games at Lord’s where the wicket’s spun, and last time it seamed around everywhere as well. We’ll see when we get to Cardiff, but if they take three quicks then, yes, it will be tougher because someone’s going to have to miss out.”

Ricky Ponting has said he would be more than happy to have Andrew Symonds in his Ashes squad but conceded the selectors faced a hard call on whether they could squeeze him in

Cricinfo staff19-May-2009Ricky Ponting has said he would be more than happy to have Andrew Symonds in his Ashes squad but conceded the selectors faced a hard call on whether they could squeeze him in. The touring party will be named at 11am (AEST) on Wednesday and there is no guarantee that Symonds, who was once a certainty in the starting XI, will be chosen.His off-field issues over the past year have led to him being stood down from the side on two occasions and he has struggled to regain his best form at first-class level. That has allowed Marcus North to capably slot into the No. 6 role, while Andrew McDonald has held down the allrounder’s position.Shane Watson and Brad Hodge will also come into contention along with Symonds, who made his latest comeback for Australia in the recent one-day series against Pakistan in the UAE. Ponting said it would be no great bombshell if Symonds was named in the squad, which is likely to feature 16 players.”I wouldn’t be surprised, he has had his share of battles over the last 12 months, obviously the well documented stuff off the field,” Ponting told AAP. “He’s worked his way back into domestic cricket pretty well and played well for us over in Abu Dhabi, Dubai.”He’s a great guy to have around a team, there is no doubt about that. Obviously the selectors are going to have some tough decisions to make in the coming hours.”Blog with Alex Brown on the Ashes squad between 10.30am and 12.30pm (AEST) on Wednesday

A round-up of the third day of the 12th round matches of the Regional Four Day Competition

Cricinfo staff30-Mar-2009Windward Islands scripted a dramatic come-from-behind win over champions Jamaica at the Trelawny Stadium. Batsmen found it tough going right through the match and it got worse when Jamaica, who led by seven on first innings, were dismissed for 107 the second time around. Chasing 115, Windwards managed to scramble to a three-wicket victory. Earlier, resuming on 8 for 1, the Jamaicans were soon reduced to 17 for 5 on the third morning. Nelon Pascal struck first, bowling Danza Hyatt for 7, while Deighton Butler sent back night-watchman Andrew Richardson, Tamar Lambert and Wavell Hinds. David Bernard stubbornly resisted with a 61-ball 50 and put on 58 with Brendan Nash but the partnership ended just before lunch when Nash handed a return catch to Shane Shillingford. Keon Peters then sliced through the lower order as Jamaica failed to add substantially to their lunchtime score of 80 for 6. Butler, Shillingford and Peters ended with three wickets apiece. Windwards lost openers Miles Bascombe and Devon Smith before tea during the chase but had edged close, entering the last session at 69 for 2. But they endured another nervy period as they lost a flurry of wickets. Odean Brown reduced them to 96 for 5, picking up the key wicket of Andre Fletcher who top-scored with 43, including six fours and a six. Nash struck a double-blow to remove Liam Sebastien and Butler, but captain Rawl Lewis and Shillingford saw the visitors home.Spinners Veerasammy Permaul and Davindra Bishoo shared seven wickets among them to hand Guyana first-innings points against Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) at the Queen’s Park Oval. Permaul bagged 4 for 54 and Bishoo picked up 3 for 48, to restrict the hosts to 259 in reply to Guyana’s 282. Captain Daren Ganga stroked a stylish half-century but the middle and lower-order batting failed to click. Continuing from their overnight score of 53 for 1, Barath was first to be dismissed off Brandon Bess for 38. The in-form Darren Bravo then joined Ganga and added 63 before Permaul had Bravo caught at point by Sewnarine Chattergoon. Sherwin Ganga put on a useful 73-run fifth wicket partnership with his brother Daren, but Permaul struck again, dismissing Sherwin for 36. Daren, who looked on course for his 21st first-class century, holed out to Bess off Permaul soon afterwards as the hosts stuttered. He ended up with 92 off 262 balls, hitting eight fours and three sixes. The remaining batsmen failed to offer resistance as Bishoo accounted for Gibran Mohammed, Rayad Emrit and debutant Navin Stewart as T&T folded disappointingly. Guyana were zero without loss at stumps.Runako Morton stroked a brilliant 173 as Leeward Islands responded strongly to Combined Colleges & Colleges’ (CCC’s) first-innings total of 519 at Grove Park. Resuming on 75 for 1, Leewards had a strong morning session, adding 91 runs and losing Montcin Hodge for a marathon 64, comprising six boundaries. Having reached his fifty before lunch, Morton marched to a hundred in the afternoon session as Leewards continued to dominate the CCC bowling. Morton played a diligent innings and by the end of the day had struck 19 boundaries and two sixes; he was looking good for a double-century. Anderson Sealy was the most successful bowler for CCC with 3 for 119.”This was a more patient innings than last week against Barbados,” Mortontold . “To be honest, the bowlers didn’t make it easy for us to score and we had to work hard for these runs.”

Southampton were heavily linked with Teun Koopmeiners in 2020, and after he completed a move to Atalanta in the transfer window, you’d have to feel that the Saints missed out on a player who would’ve been ideal in Ralph Hasenhuttl’s squad.

What’s the word?

Southampton reportedly bid around €16m (£14m) for the Dutch midfielder last summer but were unsuccessful in their attempts to bring him to St Mary’s, as he remained with AZ Alkmaar for the 2020/21 campaign.

However, he completed a move to Atalanta late in the summer transfer window in a deal reportedly worth €12m (£10.3m), which suggests that he could’ve been a bargain option for the Saints.

Would Koopmeiners have been a good signing for Southampton?

The 23-year-old midfielder certainly seems to fit Southampton’s transfer model as he is a young midfielder who would’ve cost just over £10m, which was the budget Ralph Hasenhuttl set for new signings ahead of the transfer window.

The Austrian also suggested in the transfer window that he was looking for a player who could play as a centre-back or a ‘number six’, and Koopmeiners has been a regular in both of those positions in his career thus far, so he would’ve been ideal at St Mary’s.

Even following the signing of Lyanco from Torino, it was still suggested that Hasenhuttl wanted more cover for Oriol Romeu and Ibrahima Diallo in the defensive midfield position, so a late move for Koopmeiners would have made a lot of sense.

Despite predominantly featuring as a defensive midfielder, the Dutchman was in sensational form for AZ Alkmaar last season, contributing 15 goals and five assists in 31 Eredivisie appearances and averaging a superb 7.31 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

[freshpress-quiz id=“594431”]

If the 23-year-old is able to replicate those sorts of performances for Atalanta in Serie A this season, then you’d have to feel that Southampton will have made a big mistake in not reigniting their interest in Koopmeiners this summer.

In other news… Southampton can sign their next Walker-Peters in 21 y/o tipped to reach the “very top”

The Athletic’s Gregg Evans has dropped a behind-the-scenes claim at Aston Villa about what Johan Lange is pushing for from Dean Smith.

What’s the story?

The Midlands club enjoyed a busy summer transfer window which saw numerous players come in and Jack Grealish head to Manchester City, but one man who has kind of been lost in the shuffle over the past few months is Morgan Sanson.

Writing for The Athletic, Evans revealed: “It’s understood that sporting director Johan Lange was very keen for Sanson, who made his first appearance in 149 days for the under-21s last night, to be given a chance to show what he is made of, too. It was Lange who pushed hard for that particular move, with CEO Christian Purslow agreeing that a £14 million deal last January represented good value for money.”

He added: “Whether a perceived fragility comes back to bite Villa in their quest for the top half remains to be seen. Can Luiz pull it all together to become the defensive midfielder Villa are missing? Will Nakamba find some consistency? Or does Sanson fill the gap? The weeks and months ahead should provide some answers.”

Villa fans may be fuming

In what was a rather frustrating first half-season in English football for Sanson, the Frenchman made just nine appearances in the Premier League totaling 291 minutes worth of football.

Following his disappointing displays, former Premier League goalkeeper Paddy Kenny said: “I don’t see why they wouldn’t sell him if he’s not producing. It’s only six months and sometimes you’ve got to give players a little bit more time. Not everyone settles well in this country.

“But if they are interested in a couple more midfielders then that could be a sign. There’s no shame in cutting your losses and moving on. People make mistakes. You’re never going to get every signing spot-on.”

Such has been the disappointment surrounding him that reports emerged even in late March that Villa chiefs felt they had made a big mistake in bringing Sanson to the club, and that “he is said to be very difficult to manage, and proved to be so much trouble for two of his former agents they decided to let him go.”

The report added that “there is a feeling in the corridors of power the club ‘haven’t done their homework’ over the 26-year-old Frenchman.”

Given that Villa were after the likes of James Ward-Prowse over the summer transfer window, it was clear that Smith was looking to bring in a new central midfielder. The fact that they haven’t done so, and may need to turn towards a player who both the coaching and recruitment staff seemingly feel isn’t up to scratch, is sure to leave fans fuming.

Lange pushing for Sanson to be given a chance is understandable given that he has only been here for a few months, but should that have been at the expense of potentially pushing the boat out for landing one of their big targets like Ward-Prowse?

Villa fans may be livid over this latest update from Evans.

Meanwhile, Ashley Preece has confirmed a major boost…