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Sunday's defeat in El Clasico all-but sealed the Blancos' fate in the title race, so how should they go about regaining their crown in 2023-24?

Franck Kessie's 92nd-minute winner for Barcelona against Real Madrid on Sunday did more than just presumptively wrap up the Spanish title for the Blaugrana. The jubilation of the Barca players in the aftermath of the midfielder's strike signified the start of something new, the first act for what could become the new dominant side in La Liga.

And that leaves Real Madrid playing catch up. It is no longer a job for Madrid to get back to their old ways. They now need to get better.

Los Blancos seem to be caught between two eras. The likes of Luka Modric, Karim Benzema and Toni Kroos don't have long left at the top of the game. Aurelien Tchouameni, Rodrygo and Eduardo Camavinga, meanwhile, still need to develop. In the dugout, there have been signs that manager Carlo Ancelotti's magic is running out – at least domestically.

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A summer of change seems likely, with new faces likely to enter and some old names cleared out. But what specifically do they need to do?

GOAL takes a look at how Madrid could catch Barcelona next year…

Getty ImagesSack Carlo Ancelotti

It is unfair to fire a manager after just one trophyless season. Coaches deserve time and opportunities to revamp their system.

At Madrid, though, managers do not get time. They must get results. And given that clear criteria, it feels like Ancelotti's time at the Bernabeu is up.

The Italian is a decorated manager, with an immaculate pedigree. He is the only manager to win all of Europe's 'Big Five' leagues. He has revived a number of struggling sides, while his charisma and influence have outlasted the trendy tactical changes that have come to dominate European football.

But now, the party is over. Madrid can still be an excellent cup side under Ancelotti, but it simply cannot be sustained over a 38-game season anymore. The truth is, Madrid have stagnated as a team.

They are on pace for the same exact points total as last campaign, while Barca have improved immeasurably. Consistency is no longer good enough, Madrid need excellence. And perhaps a familiar face can bring that…

Advertisement(C)Getty ImagesHire Zinedine Zidane (again)

Really? Zizou again?

Zidane has been out of a job since he left Santiago Bernabeu two years ago, and most assumed that he was waiting around for the France job. But now, Didier Deschamps has penned a new deal, and seems likely to be overseeing the national team until 2026.

Zidane is a patient man. Still, four years is a long time.

Twice, he has taken the helm at Madrid when the club needed a boost. The club legend has developed a penchant for lifting Los Blancos from relative mediocrity into title-winning form. He should be given the opportunity to do so again.

There are other coaches out there. Thomas Tuchel will inevitably be linked if Ancelotti is let go; Antonio Conte will certainly be looked at, too (especially if he actually has money to spend!); and Mauricio Pochettino might even be in contention.

But Madrid is a results-driven proposition. For the short term, the Spanish giants need to bring in someone who knows how to get the club back to the top. Zidane is that man.

GettyClear out veterans like Toni Kroos & Dani Carvajal

Real Madrid do not need a rebuild – all the pieces of a competitive team are there. Instead, they need to refresh.

The Blancos have been good at it recently, letting the likes of Sergio Ramos and Casemiro walk in order to bring new faces into the fold. Kroos and Carvajal should be next.

Kroos seems more likely to go at this point. He admitted a few months ago that he wanted to stay at the club on merit, and his performances haven't exactly been up to par for a Real regular. One only has to look at the way he was played off the park by Sergi Roberto in the Clasico to see that his days in Madrid are numbered.

Carvajal is in a similar situation. The right-back is immensely experienced, and can still contribute, but his defensive numbers are concerning, especially with his burst of pace fading with old age.

He could stick around, especially considering Madrid lack of senior depth at the position, but he certainly shouldn't be a regular anymore.

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GettySign a midfielder

There is allegedly an English midfielder on the market who might be quite good…

It's hard to remember a transfer saga more open than Jude Bellingham's. One week, he is Liverpool bound, the next, the Reds can't afford him. Manchester United have been in and out of the race, while Manchester City's immense funds will always keep them in the conversation.

Madrid, though, have been a constant. They have reportedly already met with Bellingham's father on at least one occasion, and seem the only real club in continental Europe that could lure the midfielder away from Borussia Dortmund.

It makes sense, too. With Modric's star slowly waning and Kroos on the way out, Madrid need a box-to-box No.8 to work with Tchouameni and Camavinga. Bellingham appears to balance the midfield trio almost perfectly.

There are other, albeit less intriguing, names on the market, such as Ruben Neves, Gabri Veiga, Kouadio Kone and Moises Caicedo. But if Madrid want to go straight back to the top, Bellingham is the guy to bring in.

Which of the continent’s past and present stars have thrived at the global showpiece?

GettyRoger Milla at 70

The three-time African Footballer of the Year, who turned 70 on Friday, starred at two World Cup finals, with his greatest impact coming in 1990, where four goals helped Cameroon progress to the quarter-final.

This was the best showing by an African nation until Senegal and Ghana matched the feat in 2002 and 2010 respectively.

At 42, in 1994, Milla became the oldest player to ever feature at the showpiece, although two players have since supplanted the icon – Colombia’s then 43-year-old Faryd Mondragon in 2014 and Egypt’s Essam El Hadary who played in Russia 2018 at 45.

Another goal at the finals in ’94 saw him break his own record, set four years earlier, of being the oldest scorer at the showpiece.

His tally of five World Cup strikes was Africa’s highest return for two decades until Asamoah Gyan matched and overtook the legendary Cameroonian in 2014.

AdvertisementAFPAsamoah Gyan

Unlike Milla, Ghana’s top marksman thrived at three finals – 2006, 2010 and 2014 – and was instrumental in the Black Stars’ progress to the last eight in South Africa.

He netted the Black Stars’ first World Cup goal only 68 seconds into their 2-0 win over Czech Republic, which was the fastest strike at the competition.

While his last-gasp extra-time miss against Uruguay in 2010 saw him miss out on even more history by making his nation the outright best performing African side at the finals, he did break a 20-year record in Brazil four years later.

Gyan netted twice in 2014 – against eventual winners Germany and Portugal – to overtake Milla’s five-goal haul, a truly commendable return for the West African.

Getty ImagesEl Hadji Diouf

Despite not scoring for Senegal at the 2002 finals, Diouf was largely seen as the Teranga Lions’ best player in their hugely impressive debut.

The West African nation stunned the competition by recording a shock 1-0 win over defending champions France who endured a forgettable defence of their crown to finish bottom of Group A.

Bruno Metsu’s troops ended second behind Denmark and were to equal the great Cameroon side by making it to the quarters.

Diouf was honoured with a place on the All-star team alongside greats like Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Miroslav Klose.

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Getty ImagesMoussa Wague

Having included the oldest player to score at the finals, we've also included Africa’s youngest ever World Cup scorer.

While Wague may not have had the influence of other players in this list, the right-back’s goal against Japan in 2018 saw him become the continent’s youngest to find the back of the net.

At 19 years and 263 days old, the Barcelona defender supplanted Ghana’s Draman Haminu, who scored against the United States in 2006 at 20 years and 82 days old.

Despite Aliou Cisse’s side's failure to progress beyond the group stage, Wague’s moment saw his name written in the competition’s history books.

City and United account for six of the spots after both teams notched impressive victories against Chelsea and Fulham respectively

Getty Images1Anthony Martial | Manchester UnitedMartial was directly involved in two of Man Utd's three goals against Fulham, scoring one and assisting another.AdvertisementLaurence Griffiths2Sergio Aguero | Manchester CityThe Argentine striker scored with all three of his shots on target against Chelsea, netting his 11th hat-trick in the Premier League.Laurence Griffiths3Raheem Sterling | Manchester CitySterling netted a brace and created two goal-scoring chances in Man City's 6-0 win over Chelsea.ENJOYED THIS STORY?

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Getty4Paul Pogba | Manchester UnitedPogba scored with both of his shots on target against Fulham, netting two of Man Utd's three goals at Craven Cottage.

Quite how England respond to their Lord’s thrashing remains to be seen, but for Michael Clarke there was no screaming and shouting after Australia’s opening defeat in Cardiff as he instead trusted his players to answer their own questions

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Jul-2015Quite how England respond to their Lord’s thrashing remains to be seen, but for Michael Clarke there was no screaming and shouting after Australia’s opening defeat in Cardiff as he instead trusted his players to answer their own questions: he could not have hoped for a more emphatic outcome.When Josh Hazlewood bowled James Anderson well before the Lord’s clock had struck 5pm on Sunday afternoon, Australia completed an overwhelming 405-run victory to level the Investec Ashes at 1-1. Given the way Australia themselves were out-performed in Cardiff it was a remarkable turnaround – not just a victory but an evisceration.”We didn’t talk too much about Cardiff, once we left that changing room our focus was turning up here and making sure we played some of our best cricket,” Clarke told . “We knew we didn’t play our best, but today the boys up there can look themselves in the mirror and know they played some pretty good cricket”Couldn’t have asked for a better performance from every single player, the way the boys batted – Smith, Rogers, Davey Warner – and the intent through the second innings was outstanding then the execution from the bowlers.”Australia made two changes for this Test. They were forced to hand Peter Nevill a debut after Brad Haddin withdrew for personal reasons and the gloveman responded with seven catches and a jaunty maiden innings. The selectors also decided to ditch Shane Watson for Mitchell Marsh and the allrounder claimed three top-order wickets to help the frontline bowlers dismantle England.”Marshy played really well, his intent shows how much of a team player he is,” Clarke said. “He got two crucial wickets in the first innings, didn’t get a long bowl in the second dig but did a great job as well. Credit to the selectors for going with their gut, it was hard on Watto who has been a fantastic player for us but that’s the advantage we’ve got with the squad.”The eye-catching bowling on the fourth day came from Mitchell Johnson who rattled England with his pace – reviving memories of what happened in Australia – but Clarke devolved questions about any reopening of scars.”That’s probably a question for Mitchell Johnson or the England batsmen. He’s such a great athlete that he can bowl long spells or I can ask him to bowl short spells – it’s about assessing the wicket and the game. Credit to the rest of the attack, too, because the way they operated allowed Mitch to do that.”

Kent all-rounder Matt Coles has been suspended for two Championship matches by an ECB disciplinary commission

ESPNcricinfo staff06-May-2016Matt Coles has received an automatic suspension from the ECB’s cricket discipline commission and will miss Kent’s next two Championship games. Kent’s cricket chairman, Graham Johnson, has condemned the decision as “disproportionate”.Coles’ absence is a big blow to Kent who escaped a weather-affected start to the season by beating Glamorgan at Canterbury to move into the top half of Division Two of the Specsavers Championship but who remain relatively light on seam bowling resources.He was reported by umpires Nick Cook and Rob Bailey during Kent’s match against Glamorgan for a Level Two breach of the code – throwing the ball at or near a player, umpire or official in an inappropriate and dangerous manner.He had previously received a reprimand following three penalty points following a Level 1 breach in August 2014 and six penalty points following a Level 2 breach in September 2014. The penalty for a subsequent breach at Level 2 within 24 months is six penalty points.The ECB statement read: “Coles has therefore received a total of twelve penalty points, triggering an automatic suspension. He is suspended from all cricket under the jurisdiction of the ECB until and including Wednesday 18th May 2016 – a period which covers Kent’s next two First XI fixtures.”Coles took 67 wickets at 23.49 for Kent last summer after returning to his home county following a brief spel at Hampshire where he never settled.Johnson expressed frustration at the decision. “In the light of the steps taken by the ECB cricket discipline commission I feel it only right to defend the position of Matt Coles,” he said. “Since his return to Kent, at the start of last season, Matt has demonstrated that he has learnt from things in the past. He has applied himself to his role on the field and represented Kent Cricket, to good effect, in off field activities.”Players carry points over a 24 month period and the two previously reported incidents are from August 2014 whilst Matt was at Hampshire. Kent made representations to the CDC regarding the breach. However, the CDC Chairman’s nominee, Mr Chris Tickle, did not consider that the consequences of this penalty might produce a result that was manifestly unfair. Under the process relating to cricket discipline there is no opportunity to appeal the outcome or the CDC’s decision.”The outcome in this set of circumstances I believe is disproportionate, it does not reflect the seriousness of the recent incident and does nothing to help a cricketer who has made such big strides since returning to Kent.”Glamorgan’s Chris Cooke was reported by the umpires during the same match for a Level One breach of the code (abuse of cricket ground, equipment and/or fixtures and fittings). He was reprimanded.Stuart Broad also picked up a reprimand after he was reported by umpires Richard Kettleborough, Michael Gough and Richard Illingworth during Nottinghamshire’s Championship match against Yorkshire for a Level One breach of the code – showing dissent at an umpire’s decision by word or action).ic suspension.

Mushfiqur Rahim has admitted it was difficult to set fields for his undisciplined bowling attack, and said that as a captain, he was made to look “foolish” when the bowlers struggled to bowl in one area continuously

Mohammad Isam in Fatullah14-Jun-20151:37

‘Could’ve played Harbhajan, Ashwin better’ – Mushfiqur

Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim has admitted it was difficult to set fields for his undisciplined bowling attack, and said that as a captain, he was made to look “foolish” when the bowlers struggled to bowl in one area continuously. Mushfiqur also felt that there was much to learn from the Indian bowlers who bowled according to the fields set by their captain Virat Kohli.Mushfiqur fit to keep for ODIs

Mushfiqur Rahim said that he has recovered from his finger injury enough to keep wickets in the ODI series against India, though it did bother him a couple of times during the Fatullah Test.
“I fielded for almost three days and it did hurt once or twice,” he said. “Otherwise, I don’t think I am in a bad situation to keep either. Hopefully I will be fit keeping-wise by the time the ODIs start.”
Mushfiqur said that he wouldn’t use the pain as an excuse for his five-ball two in Bangladesh’s first innings, when he got out nicking a catch to leg-slip.
“I can’t give any excuse about my batting. The injury might have affected me while fielding or keeping but not my batting. I’ll return to keeping in the one-dayers.”

“A bowler needs to bowl in one particular area and be consistent so that we can plan a field for the batsmen,” Mushfiqur said. “If we set a field for deliveries that are bowled in front of the batsmen and in good areas and then you see the bowler bowling a short pitched delivery, then the captain may look foolish. It depends upon the bowler and what they are executing. If our plan clicks everyone would have said positive things. If it doesn’t people will criticize.”India consistently scored more than four runs an over on the truncated first and third day of the Fatullah Test, eventually declaring on 462 for 6 on the fourth morning. None of Bangladesh’s front-line bowlers, on the other hand, went at less than three an over. Shakib Al Hasan finished with 4 for 105 at 4.28 runs per over while Jubair Hossain gave away 113 runs in 19 overs for his two wickets. Taijul Islam and the lone paceman Mohammad Shahid went wicketless, while the entire bowling attack could muster just four maidens.Combined, the bowlers gave away more boundaries on the legside (28 to 26) than the offside, and there were a noticeable number of rank long-hops from both the spinners and Shahid. Shakib admitted that he needed help from his old coach Nazmul Abedeen to correct his bowling action, while Jubair had been short of match practice having last played a first-class game in February. Shahid understandably struggled for 22 overs and even Taijul had an uncharacteristically poor Test match. Since taking 60 wickets from three Tests against Zimbabwe, Bangladesh have bowled their opponents out in an innings only once, against Pakistan in Khulna.”The captaincy depends upon the entire team and captaincy is a big issue,” Mushfiqur said. “But at this level a bowler comes and tells the captain how he is going to set a batsman up and accordingly a captain sets a field. But in our level there is a big gap here.”If our bowlers bowl one ball here and the other there, then the field setup will never look good. The way Harbhajan and Aswhin bowled, you could always use an attacking field against any side. So hopefully we can learn from this Test and work more on our bowling. It will help our Test cricket.”Mushfiqur admitted that picking just one pace bowler was a strategy they needed to revisit. Mushfiqur is the only captain who has used a single pace bowler in a Test match. The first time was in January last year when he used Al-Amin Hossain as the single seamer. Kumar Sangakkara scored a triple-century in that game and the bowling attack looked just as lopsided here as well. It was particularly unfair on Shahid, who was only playing his third Test match and at times, looked out of ideas.”Maybe had we taken another pacer it could have been good. There might have been a mistake from our side. We take a decision together with logic.”Maybe if we would have won the toss, things would have been different and our four spinners could have attacked their batsmen more. So maybe we can learn from this experience and know what are the positives and negatives of playing with a single pacer.”Mushfiqur also said that Shuvagata Hom may perhaps have been given one too many chances to prove his worth. From seven Tests, Hom averages 21.30 with the bat and 59.12 with the ball taking just eight wickets. After going wicketless in the first innings, Hom had a chance to redeem himself with the bat, but even in his 43-run seventh-wicket stand with Litton Das, it was the debutant Litton who looked far more comfortable. Shuvagata made just 9 off 25 balls.”Maybe it is a point that we need to think about. The way we gave him chances, maybe he hasn’t lived up to the expectations,” Mushfiqur said. “He did well in the last domestic competition, so we thought he could be good in the team. So we have seen him in this Test. If there’s a better option for the next Test series, then maybe someone better will be picked up, not just Shuvagata but any player.”

For the second time this season Johann Myburgh defied one of his former counties, Durham, as he gave struggling Somerset a slight edge on the first day at Chester-le-Street

ECB/PA07-Jun-2015
ScorecardFor the second time this season Johann Myburgh defied one of his former counties, Durham, as he gave struggling Somerset a slight edge on the first day at Chester-le-Street.After choosing to bat, Durham were dismissed for 189 with Craig Overton taking 4 for 40, then Myburgh followed the 115 he made against the same opponents at Taunton with an unbeaten 57.Somerset were 147 for 4 at the close, while Durham had further cause to worry about Graham Onions. After missing much of last season through injury, he has already suffered three niggles this year and was off the field for most of the evening session.Overton was the most impressive of those who might have interested watching national selector James Whitaker, although Durham’s Chris Rushworth also bowled well. The first of his three victims took him to 100 championship wickets since the start of last season.While his twin, Jamie, was left out to accommodate the return of Lewis Gregory, who proved expensive, Overton came on for the ninth over and took 2 for 19 in his first seven-over spell.His fourth ball swung into left-hander Mark Stoneman to have him lbw and one which nipped back pinned Paul Collingwood in front for a duck.From 46 for 3 Durham progressed to 117 through Keaton Jennings and Michael Richardson before four wickets went down for three runs in four overs after lunch.Jennings was lbw trying to whip Tim Groenewald through mid-wicket and Jim Allenby somehow induced a ball to leap at Richardson, who fended to second slip, where Marcus Trescothick parried it and held on to the rebound.Calum MacLeod sliced his second ball to backward point off Allenby then Paul Coughlin stayed on his crease and was lbw to Groenewald.The slump was stemmed by a brief counter-attack from John Hastings as he Gordon Muchall shared a 50 stand in 48 balls before Overton yorked Hastings and forced Muchall to edge to Trescothick.Trescothick survived a confident lbw appeal from Rushworth in the first over of the reply before the next big shout brought his downfall for 26 in the first over after tea.Tom Abell had edged a drive at Rushworth to the wicketkeeper, but at 34 for 2 James Hildreth settled in cautiously. He had made six off 33 balls when he hit two fours and survived a chance to second slip, all in the same Hastings over.After contributing 35 to a stand of 73 with Myburgh, Hildreth surrendered to Scott Borthwick’s second ball, pulling a long hop straight to mid-on.Tom Cooper did something similar, picking out mid-wicket off Rushworth, before Allenby kept Myburgh company to the close. Myburgh completed a 92-ball half-century with a four off Borthwick in the final over.

The two oldest men in the Ireland squad delivered when it mattered. The victory over Zimbabwe would not have happened without them. But the most encouraging thing was the maturity shown by one of their youngest men.

Brydon Coverdale in Hobart07-Mar-2015A hundred for Ed Joyce, four wickets for Alex Cusack. The two oldest men in this Ireland squad delivered when it mattered. The victory over Zimbabwe would not have happened without them. But the most encouraging thing to come out of this win for Ireland was not the form of their old-timers, but the maturity shown by one of their youngest men.In both Auckland and Hobart on Saturday, ABs entertained the crowd with their clean hitting. Unlike Abraham Benjamin at Eden Park, Andy Balbirnie at Bellerive Oval ended up on the winning side. Balbirnie’s only failure was in trying to make his ground in the 50th over of Ireland’s innings; a maiden ODI century was missed, but Balbirnie’s 97 was a thing of great beauty for Ireland.Not surprisingly, Joyce was Man of the Match for his 112, an innings of significance for Ireland’s World Cup campaign. But Joyce is 36 and a veteran of two countries, a man who has been there, done that. You expect him to stand up. Balbirnie is 24, and the second-least experienced player in this XI. “You’d think he was one of the senior players,” Ireland’s captain, William Porterfield, said after play.Joyce and Balbirnie came together with Ireland having started steadily, but no more. The score was 79 for 2 in the 21st over. Their 138-run partnership came off 112 balls and they kept Ireland’s World Cup dream firmly alive.Their win, and South Africa’s loss, means that Ireland need one point from their last two games against India and Pakistan to make the quarter-finals – assuming West Indies do not slip up against UAE. If Ireland remain on six points, circumstances dictate that they cannot qualify on net run rate.”Andy took the pressure off me today,” Joyce said after the match. “He hit his first ball for four and just rotated the strike really well. That gave me the ability to do the same thing. I was very lucky getting to 30 or 40 but after that it felt pretty good.”Balbirnie and Paul Stirling represent the younger generation of Ireland batsmen, the players to whom the side will look in the coming decade as Joyce winds down and as the O’Briens and Porterfield move into their mid-30s. Stirling failed here, but his credentials are well established. Balbirnie has established his in this World Cup.His 58 against South Africa came in a losing cause, but was enough to give Porterfield confidence to bump Balbirnie up to No. 4 against Zimbabwe. The faith was repaid. Porterfield himself had struggled to rotate the strike early in the innings; Balbirnie did so with ease, and then stepped on in later in the innings, notably crunching 20 runs off a Tinashe Panyangara over to help Ireland to their highest ever ODI total.Balbirnie has been around for a while. He captained Ireland at the Under-19 World Cup in 2008 and his ODI debut came against Scotland in 2010. But it was not until last year that he really started to emerge from the fringes. There was an 86 against the ACT in Canberra in October, and his maiden century for Ireland, 129 against New Zealand A in Dubai in November.That innings was against a high-quality attack that boasted Adam Milne, Kyle Mills, Doug Bracewell, Matt Henry and Nathan McCullum, and if there was any doubt about Balbirnie’s World Cup credentials, they were quelled. Even before that, Balbirnie had shown enough to encourage Middlesex to sign him, and he debuted for the county in T20s in 2014.It is a familiar route, the same one taken by Joyce, who played for Middlesex and ultimately for England, and Eoin Morgan, now England’s ODI captain.Stirling and Balbirnie played together for Middlesex last year; Ireland must hope they do not follow the Joyce/Morgan lead and end up playing for England. They are far too valuable to their home nation.”Andy has been brilliant in the last six months he’s come into the team,” Joyce said. “I hadn’t seen him really bat before this tournament. He got a brilliant hundred against New Zealand A in Dubai against nearly a full-strength New Zealand attack, and he was great today. He played brilliantly against South Africa.”As Balbirnie moved through the 80s and 90s, a conga of Ireland fans danced on the grass bank at Bellerive Oval, celebrating what they hoped would be their country’s third win of the tournament. It was, though, closer than they would have liked. Now they find themselves in a strong position, although needing to beat a third Full Member (or share points) to progress.”It’s very hard to say when you come in at the start of a long tournament, what you will need or won’t need,” Porterfield said. “We’ve just try to break it down and take it each game as it comes. Whatever we need when it comes down to the last game, we need.”But we’re just taking this India game now and that’s all we can look forward to. We’ve managed to deal with the West Indies game and the UAE game and not look past them. We’ve got to freshen up when we arrive in Hamilton and be ready to go there.”It will be a huge challenge, their bowling depth especially having been exposed through the middle overs against Zimbabwe. But at least their fate in this World Cup remains in their own hands. And not just old hands.

Scotland have shown glimpses of potential during the World Cup and their vice-captain Kyle Coetzer hopes they can put in a ‘full performance’ in their next game against Australia

Brydon Coverdale12-Mar-2015Scotland’s vice-captain Kyle Coetzer has described the World Cup as “a big learning curve” for the team, but he believes they can be competitive in their final match of the tournament, against Australia in Hobart on Saturday. Scotland are still searching for the first win in their World Cup history, and their hopes of achieving it against the co-hosts appear slim.Scotland have played Australia three times in the past decade and their margins of defeat – 203 runs, 189 runs and 200 runs – are discouragingly consistent. Last time, Mitchell Johnson caused problems by taking 4 for 36 in Edinburgh in 2013 and Scotland were bowled out for 162; Johnson looms as a serious threat this time too, along with Mitchell Starc.”Everyone has thought about it,” Coetzer said of the prospect of facing 150kph bowlers such as Johnson. “But at this stage we’ve done all our training, all our hard work has been put in, and you’ve just got to back yourselves to play on the day. The more things you put in your head now, I think that could either put a bit of extra pressure on or make you more concerned about it.”We’ve just got to back ourselves. They’re the same as anyone else. They run up and try and get you out. We can’t think much further than that. We’ve just got to back our abilities and the hard work that we’ve put in.”Scotland have impressed at times in this tournament: they got within three wickets of beating New Zealand, within one wicket of Afghanistan and posted 318 against Bangladesh. Against Sri Lanka in Hobart on Wednesday, their bowlers lacked the firepower to keep Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan quiet, although Freddie Coleman and Preston Mommsen fought hard with the bat.”We’ve got to believe we can compete,” Coetzer said. “I think we have shown with that 100-run partnership and a few decent spells with the ball in a number of these games that we’re more than capable of putting in a solid performance. What we’ve been searching for is a full performance, a good performance with the bat, in the bowling innings doing the same thing.”It’s tough with the quality of players we’re coming up against, it’s a big learning curve for a number of our guys. We definitely are taking strides forward. I think not only us but the other Associate sides have really shown that we’ve moved forwards in the last four years.”All things considered, Wednesday was not a great day for Scotland: spinner Majid Haq was sent home for a disciplinary breach and they suffered a 148-run defeat. But Coetzer it would not be hard to get motivated again in the two days between games.”We’ve had two big games for us that we just unfortunately didn’t manage to get over the line,” he said. “They were very tough to pick ourselves up and try to go again. But for us, you know, we’re playing against Australia the next game. It’s a huge day for us. Why would we need to pick ourselves up? We’re raring for it, and we want to put in a real performance and really show what we’re made of.”

AB de Villiers can no longer be considered a permanent wicketkeeper especially in shorter formats, according to South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo

Firdose Moonda31-Dec-20141:17

Domingo: Wicketkeeping a burden on AB in ODIs

AB de Villiers can no longer be considered a permanent wicketkeeper especially in shorter formats, according to South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo. Although de Villiers will don the gloves in the third Test against West Indies at Newlands, in the absence of the injured Quinton de Kock, he is unlikely to carry the same responsibility into the T20s and ODIs which follow or the World Cup.”There are times when AB is going to have to keep and we are very fortunate that he can pick that up. He hasn’t practiced his keeping in about six months and he is probably keeping as well as he ever has. He has always found keeping in one-day cricket more tiring, especially with the captaincy, it’s more of a burden on him. I’d prefer him not to keep in one-day cricket,” Domingo said. “Where there is an opportunity for him not to keep, we are hoping to pursue that. I’m sure we will have another keeper in the one-day side now that Quinton de Kock is not there.”South Africa play three T20s and five ODIs against West Indies in 19 days between January 11 and 28 and will have to use those matches to introduce another gloveman into an already settled 50-over squad. Morne van Wyk, who was part of the 2011 World Cup squad, is the leading candidate not least because he is also an opening batsman, which is the other position de Kock occupied. South Africa’s medical team remain hopeful de Kock will recover from his ankle ligament tear in time to play some part in the World Cup but will want to cover their basis in case he is not and they will face a tricky decision with the 15-man squad having to be named by January 7.Their more immediate concern is the New Year’s Test where their conundrum extends to issues in front of the stumps. South Africa will be forced to reassess their attack on a surface which Domingo expects will “offer a little bit more nip,” but also calls for a contribution from a spinner. Newlands takes turn later in the game and South Africa cannot depend on Imran Tahir to produce that consistently or effectively. That much was evident from the number of times they have dropped him – three – in the last two years and to give themselves another option, the South African selectors have included Simon Harmer in the squad.Simon Harmer has been drafted into the Test squad and could yet force his way into the side as South Africa look to expand their spin options•Getty ImagesThe Warriors offspinner was overlooked in favour of Dane Piedt earlier in the year but has since come back into contention for two reasons. The first is that Piedt has only played one first-class match following a three-month lay-off from a shoulder concern and the second, because South Africa are planning long-term. Although they won’t play Test cricket again until mid-2015, their next two away tours are to Bangladesh and India and they want a strong spin contingent for those trips.”We’ve got a lot of cricket in the subcontinent in the next few months so we want to get to know Simon a bit more and then we will make a call on whether we play him,” Domingo said.That does not mean Piedt, who took eight wickets on Test debut in Harare in August, has fallen behind in the queue, just that South Africa want to ensure he is fully fit before making a comeback. “It leaves Dane Piedt with time to get himself where he needs to be. He needs to play some more cricket particularly after a severe shoulder injury,” Domingo said.Someone else who is fighting for a spot on those tours is South Africa’s senior opening batsman, Alviro Petersen. His run of innings without a century has extended to 25 and the New Year’s Test will mark exactly two years since he raised his bat to a hundred, which has caused calls for his head but Domingo is trying his best not to hear them.”It’s a tough one because he seems to be playing really well in the nets and even in the middle. He looks really good and I don’t think a big score is too far away,” Domingo said. “Even in this match, he got out playing a shot that he probably wouldn’t play if he had to do it again.”For much of Petersen’s lean run technique seemed his biggest problem as he struggled against the left-armers in the Pakistan and Australia attacks. But his shot at St George’s suggested his temperament is failing him as well. He was tempted into a tennis-stroke by a short, wide delivery from Shannon Gabriel which has put him under even greater scrutiny. “He knows that if he doesn’t score soon, he is under massive pressure,” Domingo said.Exactly when “soon” is yet to be determined because, as Domingo explained, there are other reasons to keep Petersen around for now. “He is an experienced player, a hell of a slip fielder and offers a lot in the team space,” Domingo said. “We’ve just lost a lot icon players. It’s not so easy to throw away a guy who is capable of scoring big hundreds. I still think he has got a lot to offer this team.”Petersen will know South Africa’s transition is progressing well and a player like Stiaan van Zyl is nipping at his heels. “It does feel like we are moving in the right direction. We have a lot of youngsters in the side and you will go through some ups and downs. We’ve been going through more ups than downs,” Hashim Amla said. “It’s just to be patient with the guys we have because they have been identified as the future of South African cricket.”The future may be glimpsed at the New Year’s Test.