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The fastest Pakistan bowler to 50 Test wickets is reviving the art of legspin and is expected to bamboozle batsmen, just like Ajmal and Rehman did three years ago in UAE

Andrew McGlashan08-Oct-2015Nearly four years ago, as England prepared for their previous Test series against Pakistan, they came across a legspinner in a warm-up match against a PCB XI. He claimed eight wickets. His name? Yasir Shah.England’s two surviving top-order batsmen from that tour – Alastair Cook and Ian Bell – had contrasting experiences against him: Cook made 133, Bell a second-ball duck. That’s all they would see of Yasir on the tour. They actually won the match comfortably, by 100 runs, but it did not herald a successful Test series, instead they were whitewashed 3-0 as Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman shared 43 wickets.Now Yasir is one of the major threats looming for England as they try to avenge those defeats. And his is a wonderful story of a player being rewarded for years of toil and waiting his turn.This time last year Pakistan’s spin bowling had entered a state of flux. As so often with their cricket, they found a way through a period of uncertainty.Ajmal had been reported for a suspect action. He has not played Test cricket since and is unlikely ever to again: his first-class season for Worcestershire tallied 16 wickets at 55.62. His comrade Rehman, who took 6 for 25 to win the Abu Dhabi Test against England in 2012, drifted down the pecking order after playing his last match in August 2014.They were considerable shoes to fill, especially the role of Ajmal. The Pakistan selectors, an unpredictable group at the best of times, plumped for Yasir, who had previously had a fleeting chance at international cricket in 2011 when he played two wicketless T20s and a solitary ODI against Zimbabwe. In the second of the T20s he was the sixth bowler used and sent down a single over. That would be it for three years while Ajmal held court.Ross Taylor was dismissed three times in four Tests by Yasir•Getty ImagesYasir sidled back to domestic cricket where he remained a consistent wicket-taker – 2011-12 brought 27 wickets at 21.74, 2012-13 earned 41 wickets at 25.63, 2013-14 had an impressive 48 scalps at 16.45. He also had the advantage of having a good man to impress: his domestic captain, when available, is Misbah-ul-Haq.”Yasir has proved himself and he has made sure I have never missed Ajmal,” Misbah said recently. “He has done extraordinarily and given us breakthroughs whenever we needed them. He has taken bunches of wickets, so what else would a captain want? He has had a great impact on our victories after Ajmal and he has become an integral part of the team.”In ten Tests Yasir has 61 wickets, making him the fastest Pakistan bowler to reach 50 in Tests. When you consider the pedigree of those he has overtaken – Imran Khan, Abdul Qadir, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Mushtaq Ahmed, Saqlain Mushtaq, Ajmal himself – that is a notable achievement.Bowlin’, Yas: David Warner is befuddled into losing his wicket in Dubai•Getty Images”I just try my level best whenever I play,” he said during the recent one-day series in Zimbabwe. “It doesn’t matter what the result is in the end, good or bad, I’ll keep making the effort because when I started playing cricket I never thought that this was going to happen.”The Test debut that may never have been came against Australia, in Dubai, last October, although his initial inclusion in the squad had been met with a sense of indifference amid the fallout of Ajmal’s suspension. It would become a triumphant couple of Tests for Pakistan and Yasir. After the batsmen had piled up 454, it took a little while for Yasir to make his mark, but his maiden Test wicket came courtesy an errant cut shot by Steven Smith that found point.But it was his second scalp that made people jolt upright. Bowling round the wicket to David Warner, who was in dominant form on 133, he pitched a delivery in the growing footmarks outside off stump. It gripped, ragged into Warner, who had already been lured into thinking it was there to cut. Before he knew it he was bowled. There were shades of Shane Warne to Andrew Strauss or Warne to Shivnarine Chanderpaul. It was quite a statement from Yasir.”I actually started bowling legspin watching Shane Warne, and he is my idol,” Yasir said during the Australia series, when Warne had lauded his performance. “My brother, who is in UK, used to show me his videos and send me the copies, so I tried to model my career watching him.”Fifteen wickets followed in three Tests against New Zealand, ten in two against Bangladesh and then 24 in three against Sri Lanka. He hasn’t just been mopping up the tail either. Ross Taylor fell four times to him in three Tests, Angelo Mathews three times in the series, and both Mushfiqur Rahim and Smith three times in two Tests. Expect an England batsman or two to be in that collection by next month.In a practice match in England’s previous series against Pakistan, Yasir took 8 for 114•Getty ImagesYasir is a trailblazer for an art form that has entered a fallow period. There are a few legspinners around – Devendra Bishoo, Imran Tahir, Amit Mishra, Ish Sodhi and Adil Rashid – but not all of them play Test cricket, or if they have, they do not come close to Yasir.He will be the finest legspinner England will have faced in Tests since Anil Kumble in the home series against India in 2007. That came shortly after Warne’s final series in the 2006-07 Ashes whitewash. It marked the end of an era, when Warne, Kumble and, in a slightly less emphatic way, Mushtaq, Danish Kaneria and Stuart MacGill had dominated the game for more than a decade.Since Kumble played his last Test in November 2008, Yasir’s 61 wickets make him the leading legspinner. The next five between them – Bishoo, Mishra, Tahir, Kaneria and Sodhi – have taken 210 wickets at 41.67 in a combined 64 Tests. By way of comparison, in the period between 2000 and 2008, which encompassed a significant period in a golden age for wristspin, the top four – Warne, Kumble and Kaneria and MacGill – took 1081 wickets at 29.71 in 222 matches.It is not that the game has been devoid of high-quality spin. The doosra (although there are significant question marks over its legality) and the carrom ball took over from the flipper and the googly. Even the occasional orthodox spinner, such as Graeme Swann and now Nathan Lyon, has managed to show that old-fashioned virtues still have a place, but wristspin has been a rare beast. And there are few better sights than watching a high-class legspinner work over a batsman. Unless you are the batsman in question.England have seen Yasir once since that match in early 2012. He took 3 for 45 against them in a World Cup practice game at the SCG. Joe Root had a decent look at him that day in making 85, and that head-to-head will be one of the defining contests of the forthcoming series. This time, Yasir provides much than just a warm-up act.

Plays of the day from the only T20I between England and India

Sidharth Monga at Edgbaston07-Sep-2014The shot
It is your international debut. You are opening the innings. The opposition captain has put you in an unusual position by opening the bowling with a spinner. The two deep fielders are long-on and deep midwicket, covering the shots with the turn of the offspinner. You face first ball with respect, and reverse-sweep the second ball you face in international cricket. For four. Welcome, Jason Roy.The drop
In the fifth over of the match, Joe Root tried to pull one from Mohammed Shami that was not short enough, and managed just a soft top edge. The ball lobbed towards the square-leg umpire, an area Ian Gould vacated in earnest. R Ashwin got under the catch assuredly, but he didn’t seem to call for it. Nor did Karn Sharma, who moved in from short fine leg. Eventually it was left to Ashwin to take it, but he possibly had Karn in his peripheral vision and dropped it. As soon as he dropped it, Ashwin gestured towards the debutant, which meant Karn was a factor in his dropping it.The landmark shot
At the start of the 10th over, Virat Kohli chipped down the wicket and chipped James Tredwell over extra cover for four. A good shot to watch. But there was more significance to it. With that hit, in his 15th international innings of the tour, Kohli reached 40 for the second time. In the 13th over, when Kohli dug one full ball out, he reached his first fifty of the tour.The dozy 12th man
It is almost a custom nowadays, especially in the high-octane Twenty20 format, for the 12th man to run onto the field when a wicket falls. He carries drinks, towels and gloves for the unbeaten batsman. When Shikhar Dhawan fell in the 11th over, though, Kohli had to wave his arms to catch the attention of his 12th man, Sanju Samson. The drink delivered, Samson’s misery hadn’t quite ended. The first ball Suresh Raina played chipped the toe of his bat. As it is, it would have been difficult for him to convince umpire Ian Gould to stop the play to get a new bat, but it turned out the 12th man wasn’t ready with the replacement bats when Raina successfully finished his convincing. Another delay.The double attack
MS Dhoni stepped out and whipped the first ball of the 16th over square on the leg side. Gould at square leg had to take quick evasive action, but he had barely recovered from it when Moeen Ali’s rocket throw from deep square fizzed past his head. A character himself, Gould got into a mock altercation with Moeen, throwing up his arms, and throwing his hat down to the ground.

Belonging to the increasingly dying tribe of the artist, was VVS Laxman. Very Very Special, indeed, and a saviour of India on many occasions

VJ Subbu25-Feb-2013Strokes in cricket, nowadays, can be broadly tethered to two camps.One, the butcher’s camp: savage, brutal, marauding, bordering on the malevolent. When the leather is greeted by such a willow, it feels assaulted. And if it’s a case where the shot is mistimed and the ball still reaches the boundary because it is muscled so, the leather feels guilty that it may have betrayed the game’s interest.The other, the artist’s camp: here the ball is caressed, cajoled, stroked … Like Renaissance master Michelangelo reporting for duty at the Sistine Chapel. The field placements are petty challenges to the master at the crease. He unleashes his strokes; a little wristy glance here, a deft flick there, and by the time his work for the day is done there isn’t much difference between his wagon wheel and Michelangelo’s frescos.Belonging to this increasingly dying tribe of the artist, was VVS Laxman. Very Very Special, indeed.My first memory of Laxman is also the most enduring among many Indian cricket fans. I was in high school, taking the ‘all important’ board exams in the March of 2001. The mighty Australian cricket team was touring India and on a great run of wins. India had lost the first Test in Mumbai and in under three full days. The second Test was headed for a similar script and then Laxman conjured that 281 at Eden. The magic was not just limited to the pitch.Before Laxman’s knock, we didn’t care too much about the score. But after Laxman’s classic, I remember students coming out of exam halls shouting, “Hey, what’s the score?” And they were not talking academics; you walk out of supposedly the most important exam of your life, thirsty for a Test match score! Laxman had just got the younger generation hooked to the game’s most pristine format. Dravid and Laxman brought a sense of calm, hitherto unknown, to the Indian middle-order. We celebrated this by pulling off puns and one-liners such as: there is Laxman, so reLAX-MAN.That innings impacted not just a series but played catalyst to shaping mindsets. Indian cricketers became more assertive and Indian fans, less cynical. It is up there with Sunny’s heroics in the Caribbean and the 1983 triumph by Kapil’s devils. It was as good as a resuscitation of self-belief that a country’s sport could get.Blokes in cricket, nowadays, can be divided between two camps.One, the chest-beating kind: they find themselves in the limelight and seem to like it there, but sometimes it’s cast on them for all the wrong reasons.Belonging to the other, are the silent type: they mind their business, their conduct unsullied as the white flannels they don on the opening morning of a Test match. Soft-spoken gentlemen, capable of saving the team the blushes or leading them to triumph from the jaws of defeat, even if they are never credited their due.I’m afraid this breed is heading for extinction and their art, dying. For now, I see cricketers with great techniques and talent, but sport is not always what you play but who you are. This is where we’ll miss the Kumbles, the Dravids, the Laxmans. And somehow that thought leaves me feeling aged, even though I’m just flirting with thirty.

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the Day from the World Cup, Group A match between Sri Lanka and New Zealand in Mumbai

Nagraj Gollapudi at the Wankhede Stadium18-Mar-2011Non-starter of the day
There are many awkward ways of getting out, but nothing is more frustrating for a batsman than to get run out after the bowler deflects a straight drive onto the stumps. Tillkaratne Dilshan punched a half-volley from Tim Southee straight back. The ball bounced a yard in front of Southee who was still finishing his follow-through, but managed to stretch his right hand to slightly divert the path of the ball, which eventually went on to hit the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Upul Tharanga, who had walked forward some four yards, was forced to only walk back, head down.Wasted review of the day
Jayawardene was well aware it was a perfect reverse-swinging yorker form Southee. It was going nowhere except hitting his leg stump as it was pitched in line. Still he asked for a review, which only embarrassed him. It was a sheer waste of time, especially since he knew there was no inside edge.The unluckiest man
In the end Lasith Malinga came up with a smile. It was a smile of disbelief. Two catches had been dropped in a space of four deliveries in his fourth over. Also smiling were Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor, the beneficiaries. Malinga sent a perfectly-pitched short delivery into Ryder’s ribs, but he smartly played it off his hips, albeit in the air. It seemed to be going straight to Upul Tharanga at midwicket, but the fielder messed it up. Two balls later, Taylor slashed hard at another short delivery, pitched outside the line of off stump. He was too early into the shot, and it seemed an easy catch as the ball travelled towards Nuwan Kulasekara at third man. But Kulasekera committed the fatal error of moving forward. Just as he did that the ball rushed too fast onto him and he only managed to spike it over the ropes. A catch that should have been a single at most ended up being a six.The Murali moment
It was the duel between the two oldest players from both teams. Muttiah Muralitharan was in his element, having already managed to get rid of Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor with his loopy offspinners. He had pulled his hamstring while running between the wickets but that did not stop him from jumping high in the air as soon as Scott Styris scooped a return catch to him. With both his legs in the air and the arms raised high to hold the catch, Murali resembled a spiker more than a cricketer. For sure he had spiked New Zealand’s momentum.

Apart from his cricketing career and the death threats he received in Zimbabwe – culminating in his eventual exile – Henry Olonga’s other claim to fame is his music

Will Luke19-Nov-2006

Buy this CD for £10Apart from his cricketing career and the death threats he received in Zimbabwe – culminating in his eventual exile – Henry Olonga’s other claim to fame is his music. A talented tenor, he was spotted by the London-based Australian composer and conductor, Barrington Pheloung after appearing on the BBC. However, his first album, , is a move away from his tenor-cum-gospel upbringing. It’s Boyzone meets Westlife, Henry Olonga style.Aurelia is the latin for chrysalis, or the transformation of a caterpillar to a butterfly, several of which can be seen in the sleeve notes. However the cover also has a mystical, ghostly green depiction of Aurelia Borealis: the magnificent Northern Lights. Is it an insect in change or an electrical discharge? Either way, both could describe Olonga’s turbulent life.The music is accessible, modern and shiny and is a good example of what he is capable of as a singer. Also, the influence of Robbie Bronnimann as his producer is unmistakable. Bronnimann has mixed and produced for the Sugababes, Howard Jones and other acts and is as much his work as Olonga’s.Indeed it’s difficult to tell how much influence Olonga had on the 10 tracks, each of which are named with a wistful longing to a better, safer and happier time. “You Deserve,” “Rise Again” and “Make It All Count” could describe his career as a cricketer quite aptly.It’s equally difficult to know its intended market. Teenage girls might enjoy the syrupy lyrics and gentle nature of the album, but fans of Olonga’s voice might be better off waiting for his second album which, he promises, will bridge popular music with classical. He is nothing if not a charismatic, determined character and, after all his trials, this is an impressive first album. But unlike the chrysalises littered in the sleeve notes, he hasn’t quite broken free – yet.

Australia captain survives close call to rack up vital fifty, and give her side the edge in tense tussle

Andrew Miller25-Jun-2023

In a parallel universe, Alyssa Healy would currently be nursing her fourth consecutive duck in Ashes Tests and England, in all probability, would be favourites to seal a compelling contest at Trent Bridge and steal a march in their bid to win back the trophy for the first time since 2015.Instead, Healy – Australia’s stand-in captain in the absence of Meg Lanning – survived a near-unplayable first delivery from Kate Cross, one that took a low edge and deflected off the tip of Amy Jones’ gloves, to halt Australia’s dramatic post-lunch collapse with a typically gutsy knock of 50 from 62 balls.On her watch, Australia inflated their total from a ropey 198 for 7 to a daunting 257, for an overall lead of 267, and after the capture of five England wickets in a feisty evening onslaught led by the offspin of Ashleigh Gardner, they reached the close of day four with their dominance restored.Related

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And speaking after play, Gardner, whose figures of 3 for 33 mark her out as Australia’s likeliest matchwinner as the contest moves into the uncharted territory of a fifth day, acknowledged that Healy’s knock had been a “huge” factor in reasserting her Australia’s position. And it had been especially important on a personal level too, given that Healy’s first-innings duck – bowled by England’s ten-wicket star Sophie Ecclestone – had followed on from her pair in the last Ashes, a thrilling draw in Canberra in January 2022.”We spoke at tea about how crucial those last few runs were,” Gardner told Sky Sports. “To see her stand up and have a captain’s knock in our own right was fantastic, and a bit of a monkey off the back for her as well. But for her, it was leading from the front and then taking a bit of that confidence into her keeping as well. I think she’s kept fantastically this whole Test match and, as bowlers and fielders, we just need to back that up as well.”Beth Mooney’s Test-best 85 was another critical factor in Australia’s overnight dominance, after she and Phoebe Litchfield had added 99 for the first wicket prior to England’s mid-innings fightback.”That’s Alyssa to a tee,” Mooney said at the close. “She loves being in the contest. She’s a competitor. And there’s been no doubt in our changing-room that her luck was going to change a little bit in this format, and she showed everyone the class that she is out there today with her innings.”I think that will be the difference for us, in terms of getting over 200, so I think she played beautifully and showed really good intent in really trying conditions.”Healy’s response to her own struggles with the bat had been to drop herself down to No. 8 in the order, and trust Australia’s formidable lower-middle-order to ride the confidence they had shown in their first-innings performances. Gardner’s first-innings 40 from No. 7 had been a vital factor in rescuing Australia from a dicey 238 for 6 in the first innings, while Annabel Sutherland’s maiden Test hundred had taken the attack back to England on the second morning.Ashleigh Gardner made vital inroads•Getty Images

When, however, both players were undone in consecutive overs, with Kate Cross and Ecclestone combining to instigate a collapse of 3 for 3 in 12 balls, Healy’s formidable resolve was just what Australia needed to get their innings back on track.”To Midge’s credit, she’s always trying to do the right thing by the team, and get a few different people into the game,” Mooney said about her demotion. “So I wasn’t surprised at all. I think she’s one of the most selfless players I’ve played with so, absolutely, she was trying to get the team in the best position possible. But there’s not going too No. 8s floating around world cricket with her credentials, so I don’t think she was too unhappy about it.”As for the overall match situation, Mooney acknowledged it was still very much in the balance, even though Australia’s capture of five late wickets, following a composed opening stand of 55 between Tammy Beaumont and Emma Lamb, has left them with the momentum going into a final day that the authorities at Trent Bridge have confirmed will be free entry.”I think it is teetering a little bit,” Mooney said. “I think the first hour tomorrow will go a long way to finding out who’s going to come out on top. We’ve still got to bowl really well on that wicket, and try to extract as much as we can out of it.”I back our bowlers to take five wickets,” she added. “There’s a lot of time left in the game and not that many wickets for us, compared to what we had an hour and a half ago. So I’m really excited to see what’s to unfold tomorrow, but certainly, we feel like we’re probably the happier team walking off this afternoon, for sure.”Ecclestone, whose ten-wicket haul reaffirmed her long-held status as the premier spinner in women’s international cricket, was phlegmatic about England’s overnight position – not least because her prowess with the bat will doubtless be a factor in the contest’s denouement. She is likely to bat at No. 9 in England’s order for this run-chase, following the promotion of Cross as nightwatcher shortly before the close.”We’re definitely winning tomorrow,” she said. “We’ve put ourselves into a lot of practice games, a lot of pressure situations. So, tomorrow, I’m backing our team all the way.”[Hitting the winning runs] would top it all off,” she added. “Hopefully [Danni] Wyatt can keep batting, and Crossy [Kate Cross] looked lovely those last few balls…I mean, I wasn’t watching to be honest. I was sat in the physio room, just waiting for the balls to be over, to be honest.”It’s just the beauty of Test cricket, it’s mad how things change,” she added. “It’s such a great form of the game that things happen so fast and things change so fast. So hopefully we can put them under a little bit of pressure tomorrow morning, and go back at them.”

Bangladesh’s Abdur Razzak also produced an economical spell in a rain-hit contest on Monday

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Mar-20239:30

Watch – Highlights from Asia Lions vs World Giants

10-overs-a-sideA fine batting performance from Misbah-ul-Haq (44 not out) followed by an economical display of spin bowling from Abdur Razzak (2 for 2) helped Asian Lions beat World Giants by 35 runs in a rain-curtailed match on Monday. The Asian Lions’ second consecutive win pushed them to the top of the table.A wet outfield had delayed the start by more than two hours, forcing the game to be curtailed to 10 overs a side. World Giants captain Aaron Finch’s plan of opting to bowl first on a slow, damp pitch worked beautifully in the first seven overs. Finch utilised four spinners, including Monty Panesar, Ricardo Powell, Chris Gayle and himself, and the slow-bowling option of Paul Collingwood.It was a struggle in the early stages for the former Sri Lankan opening pair of Upul Tharanga and Tillakaratne Dilshan. After a sedate start, Tharanga tried to pick up the pace in the second over but he was stumped after missing a flat delivery off Powell.The first boundary of the Asian Lions’ innings came off the final delivery of the third over as Dilshan came down the pitch to hit a flighted delivery off Panesar straight down the ground. Dilshan kept the scoreboard moving with singles but couldn’t find much support in new batters Thisara Perera and Shahid Afridi.Misbah, though, picked up from where he left off from the previous match. He smashed Gayle for a six over long-on before hitting Powell for three boundaries in the eighth over. He then lofted Collingwood over long-on for six to bring up his fifty-run partnership with Dilshan. He finished with a 19-ball 44 to push the Asian Lions to 99 for 3 in their 10 overs.World Giants never really got going in their chase after the dismissals of openers Chris Gayle and Lendl Simmons. Gayle survived an early scare in the first over from Mohammad Hafeez. He was given out on the field after missing a sweep but his review showed the ball was going over the stumps.Gayle then struck Dilshan for three consecutive sixes off the first three deliveries of the fourth over. Shahid Afridi, though, put an end to Gayle’s cameo in the fifth over as he hit a short delivery straight to Thisara Perera at long-on. Gayle’s opening partner Simmons was the next to fall in the same over. The openers were the only batters to make it to double digits as the chase fell away rapidly after that.Former Bangladesh spinner Razzak got the wickets of Shane Watson and Ricardo Powell in the eighth over, which was also a maiden, to kill the chase as the World Giants fell woefully short.

Manchester United’s revamped £50 million ($67.2m) Carrington training centre has officially reopened after a year-long transformation, with Diogo Dalot declaring there are now 'no excuses' for underperformance. Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who led the overhaul, labelled the previous facility 'a hospital'. Dalot says it’s now up to the players to deliver results that match their surroundings.

Dalot says there are "no excuses" after Carrington revampRatcliffe hails "world class" £50m training groundUpgraded facilities include sleep pods and Formula 1 simulatorFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

United’s first-team facility at Carrington reopened on Friday following a £50m rebuild that began last year. The modernised complex features a high-altitude chamber, sleep pods, a padel court, a Formula 1 simulator and even a barber’s room. Originally opened in 2000, the building has been redesigned to meet the highest performance and recovery standards in football.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWHAT DALOT SAID

Speaking at the opening, Dalot said: "Ultimately, we're talking about our second home, which is where we spend the most time after our personal homes with our families. So I think you should be able to feel good once you come in. I think these facilities right now are exactly what we thought it would be and even better. We adapted really quick because there was no time for us to almost think about it because we had so many games to play, so many things to concern.

"But like Sir Jim said today, obviously it's not the perfect conditions that you could have to do a season with so many games and so many difficulties like we had last season. But also the big thing that I like the most is now there's going to be no excuses.

"It's what we're going to do on the pitch that obviously will determine what we do and where we put the club back on top because you're going to have everything that you need to be in your best shape mentally and physically."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

The upgrade comes after Cristiano Ronaldo publicly criticised United’s outdated facilities during his second stint, claiming 'nothing changed' in over a decade. Dalot, responding to those remarks, said Ronaldo 'would love' the transformation and credited Ratcliffe and INEOS for delivering it.

He added: "I'm sure he would love it if he would be able to see it. But overall, I think the message was clear that this club deserved even more and all credit to Sir Jim and his team."

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AFPWHAT NEXT FOR MAN UTD?

The Red Devils will now look to translate their state-of-the-art surroundings into tangible success on the field. Manager Ruben Amorim and his squad head into the new campaign with expectations high and pressure to end the club’s recent trophy drought. For Dalot and his teammates, the message is clear – results must reflect the investment.

Wrexham have announced the signing of veteran forward Kieffer Moore in a £2 million ($2.7m) deal from Sheffield United.

Wrexham sign striker MooreFurther statement of intent from Red Dragons Welshman keen to aid Premier League pushFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

The Red Dragons have added the 32-year-old to their list of attacking options ahead of the 2025-26 campaign, as they target an unprecedented fourth promotion in a row to the Premier League. Moore has signed a three-year deal with his new club, and the Blades are set to receive around £2m for their target man.

AdvertisementWHAT MOORE SAID

Speaking for the first time as a Wrexham player, Moore told the club website: "I’m over the moon to join the club and I can’t wait to get started.

"I want to be that experienced leader and bring a lot to the team. My work ethic is one of my strongest assets and I want to be someone that can help drive the team forward."

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Moore is the latest in a long list of experienced names to make the switch to Wales this summer. Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have decided that recruiting those have played in the Premier League is their best shot at challenging for a spot in the top flight this season. The likes of Conor Coady, Danny Ward and Lewis O'Brien have already joined in recent weeks.

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT?

Wrexham kick off their Championship campaign against Southampton on Saturday, which will be an immediate test to see the level they are at. Moore will not face his old side Sheffield United until Boxing Day.

Corey Anderson starred with his maiden T20I half-century for USA as they beat Canada by four wickets at Prairie View to complete a 4-0 series win.Anderson and opener Nitish Kumar combined for a 104-run partnership after USA were reduced to 9 for 3 in their chase of 169. Anderson was the anchor, with a 48-ball 55 in his second match for USA. He smacked two sixes and six fours. Nitish was the more aggressive of the two, scoring a 38-ball 64 comprising four sixes and as many fours.Nitish carried on even after Anderson was dismissed by offspinning allrounder Harsh Thaker. Though Nitish and Shadley van Schalkwyk were dismissed in the space of four balls, Harmeet Singh and Nisarg Patel sealed the victory in the final over without much fuss.For Canada, all their batters except opener Srimantha Wijeyeratne got starts, scoring 15 or more, but no one could carry on to make a big score. Three players reached the thirties, and Thaker, who also picked two wickets, finished as their top scorer with a 24-ball 38 that saw him hit three sixes.Canada kept putting up nifty partnerships, not letting USA get wickets in clusters. An unbeaten 39-run stand for the sixth wicket saw Canada go into the innings break with momentum on their side.And that momentum carried into USA’s innings, with Rishiv Joshi trapping Andries Gous lbw second ball. Canada captain Saad Bin Zafar had then sent his opposite number Aaron Jones – the highest run-scorer of the series – packing with the first ball of the second over and then had Gajanand Singh caught behind next ball to find himself on a hat-trick and Canada in a strong position.But ultimately, as has been the case through the series, USA were once again too good for Canada.