Real Madrid could make a bid for Liverpool target Alisson as Roma plan to resist offers until after the World Cup, according to The Guardian.
What’s the word?
The rumour mill has churned out many stories regarding Liverpool’s apparent hunt for a new goalkeeper.
Following Loris Karius’s blunder-filled performance in the Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid in Kiev, the speculation has intensified.
Alisson has regularly been a name associated with the Reds, and now according to The Guardian, Liverpool could face a battle to sign the shot-stopper.
The report claims that Roma are planning to knock back any offers tabled for the Brazilian until after the World Cup.
In addition, Real Madrid could also launch a move for the 25-year-old, who has been capped 23 times by his country.
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Should Liverpool embark on a bidding war?
The Guardian claims that Roma want around £79m for their shot-stopper.
It is unclear whether Liverpool would be willing to match that figure, but Roma could end up taking advantage if both the Reds and Los Blancos make their interest known.
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Signing a goalkeeper should be at the top of Jurgen Klopp’s list, but they do not want the Alisson pursuit to drag all the way through the summer window.
If possible, any deal for a new shot-stopper should be sorted as quickly as possible so that they can get a full pre-season with the team.
Alisson certainly meets the criteria that Liverpool need, but they should continue keeping an eye on other targets.
Love him or hate him, Jose Mourinho is a manager who certainly captures attention.
The Manchester United coach has a glittering CV given that he has won titles at Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Real Madrid.
Mourinho is yet to achieve such a triumph at Old Trafford, but he still has a season left on his contract to do so.
As well as his success on the pitch, the 54-year-old is known for how he handles himself, particularly in front of the media.
The ex-Chelsea boss has often rubbed people up the wrong way and has numerous times got into a public war of words with his peers.
The most recent of spats involves himself and current Blues manager Antonio Conte.
The pair have traded insults back and forth while addressing the media in press conferences.
BBC Sport pundit Garth Crooks thinks that Mourinho’s attitude is an attempt to deflect from the fact that his team have failed to challenge Manchester City in the title race.
The red half of the city are currently 12 points adrift of Pep Guardiola’s side, who lost for the first time in the league this season in a 4-3 defeat to Liverpool last Sunday.
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Crooks has not only lambasted Mourinho for his conduct, he has gone so far as to say that the United boss “gives nothing back” to the game.
In his Team of the Week column for BBC Sport, the pundit wrote:
“[Mourinho] has been irritatingly astute at taking the attention away from the fact that his team have failed to lay a glove on Manchester City and he is using Conte as the diversion. Every time Conte bites back it diminishes the former Itay international who, having played the game at the highest level, respects its customs and traditions. Mourinho on the other hand shows no respect to either of those conventions because he is a mere beneficiary of the game and gives nothing back in return.”
side host Norwich City in the Capital One Cup at Old Trafford in yet another crucial game for David Moyes.
Moyes has enjoyed an indifferent start to life as United boss and he of all people realises how important it is to win silverware in his first season at the club.
After narrowly edging past Stoke City on Saturday, the United faithful will no doubt demand a comprehensive victory here against a Canaries side who are not just struggling for goals, but also form in general.
But Norwich can take hope in the fact that they have never lost a League Cup fixture against United, winning two and drawing one, while they have netted a combined nine goals in the previous rounds of this competition this season.
However, United’s home form in this competition is strong with just one loss from their last eleven at Old Trafford, which doesn’t make pretty reading for Norwich who have failed to win a match at Old Trafford in any competition since 1989.
Despite Moyes’ need for silverware and the fact that that the Capital One Cup looks like a golden opportunity to do so this season, he is still expected to rest some big names on Tuesday night. Robin Van Persie and Wayne Rooney are likely to sit this one out, paving the way for Saturday’s match-winner Javier Hernandez to get the nod up-front. Wilfried Zaha may also start to United, with the England U21 star hoping to impress Moyes in order to earn a chance to play a part in the Premier League.
Considering Hughton’s need to get the Canaries’ league form back on track, he is expected to make a host of changes to his side. Ricky van Wolfswinkel will definitely miss out due to a toe injury, Johan Elmander and Gary Hooper fighting for a starting spot, although Hooper looks a more likely choice after impressing with a match winning brace in the previous round against Watford.
David Moyes knew how much pressure the United job came with, but he will not have expected to be under so much pressure from the fans so soon in to his Old Trafford career, which makes winning this tie more important than it perhaps would have been normally.
Hughton will not want to see he side roll over for United and will, of course, welcome an upset here. And he will telling his players to take a leaf out of Swansea and Bradford’s books from last season after they both caused big upsets to reach the Capital One Cup last season.
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Depression in football is regarded as something of a taboo subject. It is something that has cropped up more and more frequently over the years, and now could be argued a problem that is taken seriously.
Whilst there is so much talk of players ego’s, the vast amounts of money, and the celebrity culture that comes with being a professional footballer, the darker side that sadly does exist is so often overlooked.
A footballers vulnerability is never taken into account. The pressure’s of playing in front of thousands of people week after week, and the pressure to provide success in return for the huge amounts of money being battered about, alongside the physical and mental energy constantly needed can take its toll on a player. These pressures and strains can manifest themselves in different ways, and can often lead to depression.
It is almost a year since former Wales manager Gary Speed took his own life. Whether he was suffering from any sort of depression or mental health issue is unconfirmed, but the tragic nature of his death really made the football world sit up and take notice.
Colleagues queued up to tell us how Speed had a beautiful wife, two beautiful children, wealth and personal success. So how could he possibly be depressed?
This question proved the common misconception regarding depression – particularly amongst sports stars – which has been the root cause of the taboo nature of the subject.
Whether you are sitting on a pile of cash or not, depression can strike anyone at any time, as it is in fact a medical condition. It is not simply that Monday morning feeling, or the feeling you get when your team gets knocked out of the FA Cup. It is like breaking an arm, only the broken bits is in the chemical circuitry of the brain.
Between 20% and 25% of people will suffer from an episode of mental illness in any given year, whilst over a lifetime the risk rises to 40%. Britain has seen antidepressant prescriptions double in the last decade, whilst the world health organisation has warned that by 2030 depression will be the second only to HIV and Aids in the toll the illness exacts most on society. In other words, it is far more common than you would expect.
Going back as far as 1999, former Aston Villa striker Stan Collymore made himself unavailable for selection, citing depression as the reason. Rather than receive any sort of support from his club, his former manager John Gregory came out and said to the press: “Collymore should ask himself how it feels to be an unemployed man with four children to feed before he goes declaring himself depressed.”
Gregory may have been ill advised, or simply unaware, but his comments were undoubtably ignorant and the lack of support Collymore received took its toll on the player as he decided to retire from football at the age of 30. He was ridiculed in the media, the same way boxer Frank Bruno had been after suffering a mental breakdown.
Collymore wrote in his autobiography “Tackling my Demons” of the reasons behind his decision to call time on what had been such a promising career.
“Footballers aren’t supposed to retire when they are 30. Not unless they’re injured. Well, I was injured. I was damaged anyway. It was just that it wasn’t the type of damage that made me limp,” he wrote.
“I didn’t have dodgy knees or creaking ankles or cruciates that had to be knitted back together. Physically I was fine.
“Mentally, I was exhausted with it all. I was fried.
“I was full of resentment and bitterness and disillusionment about football and what it had done to me.”
Collymore was not the only player suffering with depression around this time, but whilst he went public many chose to suffer in silence due to fear of being ridiculed by supporters and the press.
Notorious hard man Vinnie Jones has since admitted to suffering from depression during his career, but spoke during a BBC documentary of how back then there was no support network or advice available.
“It was not recognized. Looking back now, there would have been plenty of lads who felt like me and were suffering in silence. There was nobody to talk to. The managers aren’t trained in things like that”, he said.
“If you were bottom of the league and one of the lads turned round and said look lads I’ve got depression you’d slap him round the side of the head. It would be considered a weakness. It wasn’t talked about.”
Whilst times have changed, the tragic case of Gary Speed may have been the wake up call everybody needed with regards to treating such cases differently. Not just in English football either. German goalkeeper Robert Enke tragically committed suicide in 2009 having suffered for many years with clinical depression.
Enke’s biographer Ronald Reng wrote of the reaction his tragic death drew across the world, and how it sadly provided proof that depression can strike anyone at any time.
“Robert was Germany’s number one goalkeeper. The last bulwark, calm and cool in the tensest situations, able to control his stress and anxieties at the most extreme moments,” he said.
“What power must this illness have if it can draw a man like Robert Enke to the mistaken conclusion that death is the only solution?
“Beyond the headlines, deep down, there was real pain of profound paralysis. Robert’s death reminded most of us how little we understand about the illness that is depression.”
In the days after Gary Speed’s death, national newspapers reported that the PFA had produced a handbook to be distributed to all footballers on how to deal with stress and anxiety – both signs of depression – in order to prevent another tragic suicide.
The article also gave the accounts of several other footballers that had suffered in silence with the illness, such as Andy Cole, Clarke Carlisle and Neil Lennon, and their stories were included in the handbook.
The tragic deaths of Enke and Speed seemed to have forced action from sport’s governing bodies. It seems that more is being done in order to help players suffering from the condition, and with more information available following the publication of Robert Enke’s biography and the broadcasting of a BBC documentary on the subject, it appears the illness is being given serious coverage.
As more big names have come forward opening up about their struggles with depression, the media have taken a far less aggressive stance than they did with Stan Collymore’s in 1999.
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Despite the tragic circumstances, it appears the deaths of Enke and Speed have proved a turning point in the way cases of depression in sport is handled.
More help is available nowadays to players suffering, with the option of seeing a sports psychologist privately if they are uncomfortable with revealing their condition to their teammates, managers the public and the press.
It is just such a terrible shame it took such a tragedy to make people sit up and finally take notice.
Follow me on Twitter @LukeGreenwood89 and let me know your thoughts.
The full text of Stokes’ statement at Lord’s, in the wake of the publication of the ICEC report
ESPNcricinfo staff27-Jun-2023The long-awaited report by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket was published on Tuesday, and offered a damning critique of both English cricket, and Marylebone Cricket Club – the hosts for this week’s second Test against Australia at Lord’s.The issues raised in the report have overshadowed England’s preparations for the contest, and at the start of his pre-match press conference, captain Ben Stokes read the following statement.“Just before I start, I want to make it clear I have not read the report as it only came out last night.”To the people involved in the game who have been made to feel unwelcome or unaccepted in the past, I am deeply sorry to hear of your experiences. Cricket is a game that needs to celebrate diversity on all fronts because without diversity, this game would not be where it is at today.”As a sport, we need to learn from past mistakes and do all we can to make people feel safe and be themselves at every level. I have been an England player since 2011 and I feel very fortunate to have been a part of some incredibly diverse teams and love how everyone has a different story to tell.”We must go further and be more inclusive and diverse because the game I love – and millions worldwide love – should be enjoyed without fear of discrimination or judgement whether that be due to your upbringing, race or gender.”As I said earlier, everyone has a different story to tell. I am Ben Stokes, born in New Zealand, a state-educated pupil who dropped out of school at 16 with one GCSE in PE. I needed help with the spelling and grammar in this speech and I am currently sitting here as the England men’s Test captain.”It is clear there is so much more the game has to do and, as players, we really want to be a part of that to ensure this is truly a sport for everyone.”
Nortje brushed aside concerns after being knocked down by the contraption and hurting his left shoulder and elbow
Alex Malcolm27-Dec-20222:14
Nortje: ‘My role is to be aggressive, try and speed it up’
Cricket Australia’s host-television broadcaster Fox Sports has apologised to Anrich Nortje and the South Africa team after the fast bowler was knocked down by the flying spidercam while fielding on the second day of the ongoing second Test at the MCG.Nortje confirmed after the day’s play that he was fine, despite being hit on his left shoulder and elbow. He was able to bowl – at high pace – after being hit. He was in the outfield at the time, shortly after lunch, when he was knocked to the ground by the mobile camera as it was zipping along at head height.CA confirmed that Fox Sports had admitted it was an error by the operator. The camera was not in use for the rest of the day but CA confirmed that spidercam would be in operation on day three with some extra safety measures in place to ensure such an incident doesn’t happen again.Related
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“I didn’t know what hit me, to be honest,” Nortje said. “So far so good. It just knocked the [left] shoulder and the [left] elbow. The elbow is a bit sore but otherwise seems to be okay. I’ll just monitor it and see how it goes with the [doctor].”I saw cables and then I turned around or moved my head and then I saw the camera, but I was a little bit too late. It was quite quick. It didn’t really change my mindset or anything. I tried to stay focused.”I think the one thing we’ve spoken about earlier is how low it is and it probably shouldn’t be unless [it needs to be] for certain interviews or something. But I don’t think it should be travelling head height. That’s just my opinion. And then for Marco [Jansen] as well, they must take him into consideration [for his height].”Rough day for South Africa on the field
It added insult to South Africa’s injury on a brutal day in the field. They took just two wickets in 37-degree heat, including one via a run-out, as Australia piled up 341 runs in 79 overs with David Warner making a spectacular 200 before retiring hurt.Warner survived a blistering spell from Nortje just after lunch. Nortje was consistently bowling at speeds of over 150kph, including one delivery at 155kph. He had hit Warner in the helmet earlier in the morning and hit him on the index finger during that spell. Nortje also hit Cameron Green on the index finger later in the day, drawing blood and forcing Green to retire hurt and head off for a scan.Nortje finished with just one wicket for the day, that of Steven Smith for 85. He was frustrated to have bowled so well for so little reward.”It happens,” Nortje said. “You’re in the heat, you’re trying all the things with the ball, you’re trying a different grip, try this and that. But it happens, it’s part of cricket. They batted really well.Anrich Nortje bowled at blistering pace, but only had the one wicket to show for it•Cricket Australia via Getty Images
“I thought they controlled the situation really well. They calmed it down when we were not on top of them, but when we were hitting our areas and then maybe when the guys were a bit tired or when it was a little bit later in the day, the ball wasn’t doing much, then they tried to dominate again.”Nortje wants batters to do their bit
South Africa are a long way behind in the game, trailing by 197 runs, and the series but there is one small glimmer of hope with Australia potentially two bowlers down in the second innings. Both Green and Mitchell Starc have suffered injuries to their bowling fingers. Starc will only bowl again in the game if required and looks in doubt for the Sydney Test, while the outcome of Green’s blow is still unknown.Nortje said it would be critical for South Africa to bat as long as possible second time around.”The more overs the bowlers are going to bowl, the more maybe a back-up bowler or someone who doesn’t really come on would have to apply themselves,” Nortje said. “So that’s going to be a crucial stage for us. Hopefully, we can have a lot of batters in hand and work through the difficult stages with our top order and then try and cash in a little bit later on.”
They will tour Pakistan over the Christmas and New Year season, as well as during the IPL next year
ESPNcricinfo staff10-Oct-2022After not touring Pakistan for 19 years, New Zealand are all set to visit the country twice in the space of five months to play two Tests, eight ODIs and five T20Is. It means New Zealand will not play home fixtures over the Christmas and New Year’s season this year, and will have to deal with a clash with the IPL during the second leg of the Pakistan tour in April and May next year.The two Tests are part of the ICC World Test Championship and will be played in Karachi (December 27-31) and Multan (January 4-8). The teams will return to Karachi to play three ODIs that are part of the ICC Super League on January 11, 13 and 15.New Zealand then go back to Pakistan in April and May to play five more ODIs, which are not part of the Super League, and five T20Is. The first four T20Is will be played in Karachi on April 13, 15, 16 and 19, before the teams travel to Lahore for the fifth T20I and the first two ODIs on April 23, 26 and 28. The last three ODIs of the series are in Rawalpindi on May 1, 4 and 7.New Zealand’s first visit is a part of the Future Tours Programme, while the second was agreed to make up for the matches lost when they called off their limited-overs tour of Pakistan minutes before the start of the first ODI in September 2021, citing security concerns.”New Zealand is one of the high-performing sides and the more we will play against the top teams in our backyard, the better we will get as a unit, which is crucial to our objective of featuring inside the top three across all formats,” Zakir Khan, PCB director – international cricket, said in a statement. “The New Zealand matches will also provide opportunities to our youngsters to continue to watch and follow their favourite players in action, something they have missed when we were forced to play our international cricket offshore.New Zealand last toured Pakistan in November 2003, and their return follows the tours of Australia and England to the country this year after a gap of 24 and 17 years respectively.”I know our players can’t wait to arrive and savour the experience of playing in Karachi, Multan, Lahore and Rawalpindi – places that carry a great cricketing heritage,” NZC CEO David White said. “The recent tours from Australia and England have left us in no doubt regarding the quality of the Pakistan side across all formats, and the extent of the challenge that awaits us.”
Board braced for postponement and cancellations of marquee events as implications for summer gather
ESPNcricinfo staff14-Mar-2020Joe Root, the England captain, says that his team’s overwhelming reaction was one of “relief” after their two-Test tour of Sri Lanka was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.The tour’s postponement was confirmed with England midway through the second day of their final warm-up match in Colombo, ahead of the first Test in Galle that had been due to get underway on March 19.The players left the field at P Sara Oval at 3.40pm local time, and immediately departed for the team hotel ahead of their flight back to London on Saturday morning.And speaking to PA prior to the departure, Root said that the team’s concerns for their friends and families back home had made it nigh on impossible to focus fully on the task of preparing for a Test series.”There was an element of relief,” Root said. “The right decision has been made.”You could see looking at the players that their minds were elsewhere thinking about people back home. Now that we can go and look after families and be with loved ones that’s put a lot of guys at ease.”Naturally there was a lot of talk in the dressing room and it got to a stage where it overshadowed the cricket. Looking at how quickly things have happened at home, you’re thinking about family and friends who might be a bit more vulnerable and that’s hard when you’re a long way away.”It was clear it was getting in the way of performance and affecting the mental well-being of the guys.”The postponement was reluctantly agreed to by Sri Lanka Cricket, who stand to make a significant financial loss, but with 3000 England fans expected in Galle for the first Test, the likelihood of a spike in Sri Lanka’s recorded cases of COVID-19 was high.ALSO READ:Counties’ pre-season plans in the spotlightAnd with that in mind, the England team had been briefed on the quarantine arrangements, should any players or staff have contracted the virus while on tour. They would have had to be removed from the team environment and placed under the jurisdiction of the Sri Lanka government, a prospect that Root said had alarmed the squad.”There were a number of different scenarios we could have found ourselves in that were pretty scary to be honest,” said Root.”You think how things might have gone – being in isolation here, disconnected from the team, without the security we would usually have around us at the ground or the hotel. If one of the lads was to get it in these conditions, or a member of the public travelling, it could be quite a scary experience.”England’s next scheduled international series is a three-Test home campaign against West Indies, with the first Test slated to begin at The Oval on June 4.But, with the UK government stating that they expect the peak of the virus to come in 10-14 weeks, right at the height of the tour, there is an increasing expectation that that tour will also fall victim to the pandemic. The ECB on Thursday outlined contingency plans to mitigate the financial, logistical and scheduling implications for the English season.Although mass gatherings in the UK have not yet been banned, the government have indicated that that may soon be on the cards. One prospect for English cricket would be for certain matches to be staged behind closed doors, as happened with Australia’s recent ODI against New Zealand in Sydney.”It would be very strange if that was to happen but if these things have to happen so be it,” Root said.
“We always get supported extremely well and that has played a big part in our results in recent years. They have a big impact on the way we play our cricket, we like to interact.”We don’t know when we’ll play again. I suppose you can’t have mass gatherings so there won’t be many training camps. I’m sure over the coming weeks we’ll prepare and do everything we can to be as ready as possible but until we know more it’s just a case of common sense. Look after yourself, condition well and be ready to start.”
Derbyshire could not keep up with the pace in a shortened match as Lancashire closed in on North Group qualification
ECB Reporters Network02-May-2019Lancashire won their fifth successive Royal London Cup game to close in on a top-three finish in the North Group and knockout qualification, with Derbyshire soundly beaten by 30 runs at Emirates Old Trafford.A two-hour rain delay forced a 38-overs-per-side contest on a used pitch, which made acceleration challenging. Australian overseas debutant Jake Lehmann’s unbeaten 77 off 67 balls was the feature of Lancashire’s 239 for 6 before the Falcons were tied down against spin and finished on 209 for 7.It means Lancashire sit second with 10 points from seven games ahead of their final outing at Warwickshire on Saturday.The Red Rose last achieved this winning streak in 2013 when they won six 40-over games in a row. They last reached the knockout rounds of a List A competition in 2012.Derbyshire, who have seven points from seven outings, may be out of contention by the time they wrap up the group stage against Worcestershire on Monday.Steven Croft was the pick of the home bowlers with 2 for 20 from seven overs of offspin, while Rob Jones and Matthew Parkinson also struck.Lancashire’s innings was underpinned by fourth-wicket pair Keaton Jennings, who made 84 off 88 balls, and Lehmann, both of whom were measured as they shared 86 in 14 overs after Derbyshire won the toss. Haseeb Hameed and Croft, stumped off Wayne Madsen’s offspin and caught in the deep off Ravi Rampaul, departed to leave the score at 42 for 2 in the eighth over.Jennings and captain Dane Vilas shared 52 for the third wicket before the latter mistimed Luis Reece’s first ball of medium pace to short cover, leaving Lancashire 94 for 3 in the 17th.Then came the key partnership between left-handers Jennings and Lehmann, who has replaced compatriot Glenn Maxwell for the remainder of the RL50.Lehmann swept Rampaul over long-leg for his only six and posted a 48-ball half-century, a milestone Jennings had earlier reached off 57. Jennings, on 29, was the subject of a disputed caught-and-bowled effort from legspinner Matt Critchley.Jennings eventually fended a short ball from New Zealand overseas quick Logan van Beek behind at the start of the 31st over as the hosts slipped to 180 for 4 before Jones and Josh Bohannon fell to Scotland international Mark Watt late on.Lehmann paced his innings nicely even though Watt and co limited any late damage. Lancashire fast bowler Liam Hurt fell awkwardly as he attempted to launch Watt for six in the last over, retired hurt and later did not take the field.However, that forced the use of extra spin from Croft and Jones, and they were key in stifling the visitors, who slipped from 46 without loss in the 10th over to 122 for 6 in the 27th.Reece and Alex Hughes were run out, while sandwiched in between Madsen was caught at long-on off Jones’ legspin and Croft had Billy Godleman caught and bowled off a full toss for 42 and Tom Lace lbw, pulling, four balls later. When Parkinson had Critchley caught at midwicket, it was virtually game over with Derbyshire six down.Anuj Dal played the day’s most aggressive innings with 52 off 39 balls, but he had been left with too much to do and edged Graham Onions behind. Onions was left defending 35 off the last. Harvey Hosein was 41 not out.
The legspinner picked up the wickets of Kohli, de Villiers and Hetmyer with his wrong’un to keep the visitors down to 158
The Report by Mohammad Isam02-Apr-20193:06
Getting Kohli and de Villiers in the same match is a dream – Shreyas Gopal
A superb spell by legspinner Shreyas Gopal spearheaded Rajasthan Royals to their first win in this season’s IPL, by seven wickets over the increasingly beleaguered Royal Challengers Bangalore. Gopal finished with 3 for 12, taking the wickets of Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers and Shimron Hetmyer to slow down the visitors, who eventually finished on an underwhelming 158 for four.Royals, riding on four dropped chances, hardly let the foot off the gas, starting their chase quickly before Jos Buttler, Steven Smith and Rahul Tripathi, who finished on an unbeaten 34, took them to the target with a ball to spare. It was a more convincing win than that margin would suggest.Shreyas Gopal bowled a superb spell of 3 for 12•BCCI
Gopal’s dream tripleRoyal Challengers were off to a proper start this time, with both Kohli and Parthiv Patel finding the boundaries in their strong areas. But just after they had owned the Powerplay, ending it 48 for no loss, Gopal got into the thick of things. His googly burst through Kohli’s attempted cover drive, giving the Royals their first big breakthrough.Gopal’s follow-up in his next two overs further punctured Royal Challengers’ momentum. He had de Villiers caught and bowled – it was the third time he had dismissed him in as many meetings – off another googly, this one stopping on the batsman. Hetmyer edged a slider behind in the 11th over, and by the end of his dream spell Gopal had given away just 12 runs in his four overs; it was as valuable as a T20 century.Parthiv’s lone standParthiv had only faced 18 balls – out of 61 in Royal Challengers’ innings – by the time Hetmyer was dismissed, and had moved to 33. He took stock of the situation and slowly got the Royal Challengers back on track.He didn’t hit a lot of boundaries during this time, apart from a swivel-pull for six off Ben Stokes and three fours, but held Royal Challengers together in a 53-run fourth-wicket stand with Marcus Stoinis. He went on to reach his 12th fifty in the IPL, and his first this season. The innings set Royal Challengers up for a strong finish, as Moeen Ali and Stoinis knocked off 32 runs in the 2.4 overs that remained after his dismissal.Shreyas Gopal was Man of the Match against Royal Challengers Bangalore•ESPNcricinfo Ltd
Rahane rides his luckWhen he was on 1, Virat Kohli dropped Ajinkya Rahane at slip off a zippy delivery in the corridor from Navdeep Saini. Rahane never looked back as he and Buttler rattled off 55 in the Powerplay, with Buttler pasting Saini for two fours immediately after the dropped catch.Rahane didn’t spare Umesh Yadav’s waywardness with two fours in the third over, before Buttler repeated the dose in Saini’s next over. Rahane went after Saini next with two fours in the sixth over, before falling to a Yuzvendra Chahal googly in the eighth.Royals ace the chaseThe rest of the chase fell on Buttler, Steven Smith and Rahul Tripathi. By the time Buttler was out for a 41-ball 59, he had struck eight fours and a six off Moeen.Smith, who was dropped on 23 by Umesh on the cover boundary, didn’t slow down as he cross-batted Mohammed Siraj over midwicket for his first six.Smith’s dismissal in the penultimate over – he holed out to long-on with Royals needing five off seven balls – was a little unnecessary, as he had made 38 and could have seen through the chase, but Tripathi ensured there was no drama in the end, as he calmly pulled Umesh over square leg for six to give his side their first points of the season.