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James Anderson is in doubt for Lancashire’s County Championship return after suffering a blow to his knee while bowling last weekend.Anderson was due to feature in Lancashire’s Division Two home fixture against Northamptonshire, starting on Tuesday. However, the club said he was no certainty to play after being struck on the inside of his knee while bowling to Hampshire’s James Fuller, who hit the ball sharply back during the closing stages of Sunday’s Royal London Cup semi-final, won by Hampshire.Anderson collapsed on the ground immediately after being hit and took some time to get up. When he did, he was unable to complete his spell.Lancashire coach Glen Chapple said after the match: “He was nearly able to bowl but it is a bad spot and as soon as there’s any swelling in there it can restrict your movement and limit your strength. I would imagine it would be very painful for a couple of days. I think a lot of us have had a similar blow in a similar area and it’s just at the edge of the joint.”Lancashire expect to be without Alex Davies, who is nearing a return after breaking his thumb during their seven-wicket win over Middlesex in last month’s season opener.Opening batsman Joe Burns is set to make his debut, becoming the third Australian to represent Lancashire this season after Glenn Maxwell – who recently left to prepare for the World Cup – and Jake Lehmann, whose half-century offered some resistance to an excellent performance by Hampshire’s bowlers in the one-day match.Northamptonshire expect to have two month-long loan signings available to them. Jamie Overton has joined from Somerset as he seeks to build his match fitness after a back injury, while the 23-year-old left-arm pace bowler Luke Wood has joined from Nottinghamshire. It is Wood’s second loan spell with Northants this season after he played in their first match, against Middlesex, which ended in a draw.

Afghanistan have pulled out over a disagreement about broadcasting the five ODIs

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Mar-2019

Rashid Khan caught Tendai Chatara short of his ground•IDI/Getty

Afghanistan have pulled out of a proposed tour of Zimbabwe next month over a disagreement about broadcasting the five ODIs, according to a release from Zimbabwe Cricket.The ACB had originally asked Zimbabwe to host them as part of preparations for the World Cup, which takes place in England and Wales from May to July. The ODIs were set to be held in Harare between April 18 and 28.However, after Afghanistan agreed to share the series costs with Zimbabwe Cricket, the tour hit a stumbling block over the issue of televising the games, with the Afghanistan Cricket Board reportedly objecting to a proposal to stream the matches instead.”They wanted the games to be televised but we opted for live streaming due to the costs involved,” Zimbabwe Cricket’s acting managing director, Givemore Makoni, told the . “They have fired the CEO who we had agreed the tour with.”Afghanistan will instead make do with contests against Ireland and Scotland in May as part of their World Cup build-up. They were already scheduled to visit Zimbabwe in August as part of the FTP, playing all three formats.Afghanistan recently concluded an ODI series with Ireland, which was drawn 2-2, and are set to play their second Test later this week. Zimbabwe were last in action in November, when they toured Bangladesh.

The substitute plucked a low catch on day four to dismiss Kusal Mendis, breaking a mighty 318-ball stand for the third wicket

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Christchurch30-Dec-2018

Matt Henry, substituting for Tim Southee, pulled off a superb catch at cover•Getty Images

If it’s cliched to suggest that New Zealand are greater than the sum of their parts, and that their team spirit adds a dynamic dimension to their game, it’s because they keep providing examples of their cohesiveness. Take what captain Kane Williamson said was the key moment in New Zealand’s victory in the second Test against Sri Lanka, for example. In a game in which two batsmen scored big hundreds, a seventh-wicket stand rescued New Zealand from 64 for 6, and a bowler took six wickets in 15 balls, it was a catch by a substitute fielder that Williamson said was the highest-impact action in the game.As drinks approached in the second session of day four, Kusal Mendis and Dinesh Chandimal had settled into their work, and appeared immovable at the crease. Mendis looked particularly good, and had just last week batted out an entire day alongside Angelo Mathews to save the first Test in Wellington. But just as a sense of was settling on proceedings at Hagley Oval, Mendis attempted a drive off a length Neil Wagner delivery, and sent the ball about a metre off the ground towards short cover.Fielding there was Matt Henry, who makes every New Zealand Test squad, but is repeatedly kept out of the XI by the three incumbent seamers. Although Henry might rightly feel frustrated with his situation, he produced the catch of the match to help Wagner claim his first wicket of the Test, and to break Mendis and Chandimal’s mighty 318-ball stand. Diving low to his left – his less favoured side – he plucked the ball centimetres from the turf. Wagner would go on to get 4 for 48 from the innings.”Matt Henry’s catch was the key moment,” Williamson said after New Zealand had wrapped up a 423-run victory – their highest winning margin not involving an innings result – in Christchurch. “After the first session yesterday, there were signs of a déjà vu. But Henry came on. Being a substitute fielder, perhaps you’re not quite feeling the rhythm of the game, and it can be disruptive. But he was in the right position and it went to him and he was fresh as. That was cool.”The 1-0 series win, which sends New Zealand to third in the Test rankings, was their fourth in a row. Last summer, they had beaten West Indies and England at home. Just this month, they have won two very different series, beating Pakistan 2-1 on dry tracks in the UAE, before decking Sri Lanka on much greener, faster pitches in New Zealand. Williamson said the achievement was a testament to his team’s adaptability.”That’s quite a cool thing to achieve – I wasn’t really aware of it. That wasn’t the focus. But if we do reflect on that a little bit, the positives of the different conditions that we’ve experienced and the different oppositions, all factor into being able to get across the line in a series. That makes it quite special. If we look closely at this game it was nice to make that slight step up from the previous game. We saw in that second innings that wickets were really tough to come by, but the effort that the bowlers put in enabled us to make those breakthroughs.”So many contributions in this series and others that come to mind. Tom Latham and Henry Nicholls with the bat, and the whole bowling group that contributed in this series and the other ones as well.”Williamson paid tribute to the efforts of Latham in this series, after the opener topped the run-scoring charts across the two Tests, making scores of 264 not out in Wellington, and 176 in the second innings at Christchurch. His tally of 450 runs in three innings, was 192 higher than that of the next-best scorer, Angelo Mathews, who had also had the benefit of an extra innings.”Tom’s been outstanding in this series in particular. The way he was able to maintain his focus in terms of playing each ball on its merit for as long as he can and not get ahead of himself, or thinking that he’s in, or he’s done enough, was great. The contributions that he and Nicholls made – they both scored big hundreds. It was required for us to get in that position of strength in this game.”

India’s fourth-wicket pair added an unbeaten 121 to seal the win after Yuzvendra Chahal’s 6 for 42 had reduced Australia to 230

The Report by Andrew McGlashan18-Jan-2019Regardless of the result in Melbourne, India’s tour of Australia would have been triumph. But it was given the perfect ending as Yuzvendra Chahal’s career-best 6 for 42, the joint best ODI figures in Australia, set up a seven-wicket victory to take the series. Chahal’s haul left a modest target but a slow pitch made scoring tricky as MS Dhoni, whose role has dominated the narrative of the series, scored his third half-century in three innings – while being given three lives – and the recalled Kedar Jadhav produced an excellent hand.It’s the depth of players available that marks out the best teams and the success of Chahal and Jadhav, playing their first matches of the series in place of the rested Kuldeep Yadav and Ambati Rayudu, slotted in seamlessly. Chahal’s second ball of the match began Australia’s downfall when he had the in-form Shaun Marsh stumped, and he claimed three wickets in each of his two spells, surpassing his previous best of 5 for 22 against South Africa at Centurion.Australia had their chances as they defended 230 – plenty of them – as they pushed India to the final over. Virat Kohli was dropped on 10 by Peter Handscomb, above his head at first slip off Billy Stanlake; Dhoni was spilled first ball at point by the usually safe Glenn Maxwell; Kohli could have been run out on 32 and the Australians failed to spot an edge from Dhoni when he had 34. Though the asking rate climbed following Kohli’s eventual dismissal, and nudged nine when Dhoni patted back an over from Adam Zampa, India always had wickets in hand. Yet there could have been a twist had Aaron Finch held Dhoni at mid-off when 27 were needed off 18 balls.The match had started like the other two: with a superb opening spell from Bhuvneshwar Kumar. He got one to bounce outside off to take Alex Carey’s edge to second slip, where Kohli made good ground to claim the catch, and then there was what felt like the inevitable dismissal of Finch.In the opening over of the match, which was interrupted after two balls by a shower, Finch had already had two nervous moments, firstly padding up to one with the bounce saving him and then edging short of slip. The ball before Bhuvneshwar claimed him for the third time in the series there was a curious moment, when he attempted to deliver from behind the umpire – Michael Gough called dead ball much to Bhuvneshwar’s annoyance – but with the next delivery he pinned Finch lbw.After a stand of 73 between Marsh and Usman Khawaja, Australia were derailed by the introduction of Chahal, his second delivery – mightily close to being a no-ball – manufacturing a stumping to remove the in-form Marsh when he charged at what became a wide. Three balls later he had another when Khawaja sent a leading edge back to the bowler as he attempted to turn a leg-break to the on side.Chahal’s third was one for the highlights reel when a perfectly pitched legspinner drifted and turned to find Marcus Stoinis’ outside edge with Rohit Sharma taking a terrific catch at slip.MS Dhoni plays a pull•Getty ImagesMaxwell briefly counterattacked, slotting away five boundaries as he moved along at more than a run-a-ball, before being undone by a short delivery from Mohammed Shami which resulted in a top edge to long leg where Bhuvneshwar took a brilliant catch running in. It left Maxwell with 85 runs off 61 balls in the series and a debate far from answered.With 15 overs remaining, a lengthy stay by Maxwell could have changed the complexion of the match but instead Handscomb was left with the bowlers for company, which meant he had little choice but to ensure the innings went deep. He went to his half-century off 57 deliveries, which included just two boundaries as he tried to nurse Australia to the finish, but Chahal’s return ended any hopes of a late dash – his fifth wicket coming in fitting style as he skidded one through Handscomb.Australia managed to build pressure with the new ball and after 10 overs India were 1 for 26, Rohit falling to Peter Siddle when he tried to whip a ball to leg and edged to first slip. Shikhar Dhawan struggled for his timing on a sluggish surface but the first Kohli chance came and went to allow India to lay a platform. Three balls of the 17th over brought plenty of drama as Dhawan chipped a catch to Stoinis, Dhoni slashed to Maxwell and then survived a big appeal for lbw.After his charmed life it appeared Kohli would see another chase through, but the impressive Jhye Richardson lured him into a drive to leave India 3 for 113 after 30 overs and with work to do for a reshaped middle order. Dhoni, whose fifty came off 74 balls, and Jadhav carefully ticked along, content to allow the rate to nudge up, with just the occasional show of aggression.When Zampa’s last over was taken for just a single by Dhoni, the equation was 52 off 36 which had been reduced to 27 off 18 when he drilled Stoinis towards Finch whose miserable series had a final low point as the catch burst through his hands (Jadhav also survived being run-out by a missing frame). A boundary apiece followed, and in the end, the final over started with just a single needed. Dhoni had left it rather late. But doesn’t he always?

Leeds United host Plymouth Argyle at Elland Road in the Championship this afternoon as they look to head into the November international break on a high.

The Whites are coming into this match off the back of an impressive 1-0 win over league leaders Leicester City and have the opportunity to make it three wins in succession if they can pick up all three points today.

Latest Leeds team news

Journalist Phil Hay relayed the latest injury news from Daniel Farke's pre-match press conference and a number of players are set to miss out on this clash.

Central defender Pascal Struijk will be unavailable for selection and is due to return after the international break as he deals with a hernia surgery.

Patrick Bamford is said to be a minor doubt for the match, whilst Charlie Cresswell, Stuart Dallas, Joe Gelhardt, and Jamie Shackleton are all out.

However, the German tactician could make one alteration to his XI that is not enforced by an injury with Wilfried Gnonto being unleashed ahead of Joel Piroe, whose performances have been less-than-impressive of late.

Joel Piroe's recent performances

The summer signing from Swansea City has only scored once in his last seven Championship matches for Leeds and is without a goal in his last four outings for the club.

He hit the ground running in Yorkshire with four goals in his first five games for Farke's side but has struggled to find the back of the net since that initial burst and is currently sitting on five goals in 15 league appearances for the Whites and Swansea combined this term.

Piroe played 84 minutes against Leicester, having started the match, and failed to score whilst also ending his time on the pitch with zero key passes and four out of seven duels lost.

The Leeds boss must now unleash Gnonto from the start ahead of the Dutch marksman to offer the 20-year-old a chance to impress before the break.

Gnonto's statistics this season

He has found starts had to come by this season but has caught the eye when given the opportunity to showcase his talent on the pitch for the Yorkshire-based outfit.

Gnonto has scored one goal and created nine chances in his last four starts for Leeds in all competitions, whilst he also assisted Crysencio Summerville off the bench for the first of his two goals against Norwich.

The Italy international, who was once hailed as "unpredictable" by journalist Josh Bunting, came into this season off the back of two goals and four assists in 14 Premier League starts last term.

He does have the potential to make things happen as a progressive and dangerous attacker, as shown by the 5 foot 7 dynamo's impressive statistics in the graph above, and bringing him into the XI could give Piroe extra motivation to rekindle his form in front of goal.

It would show the former Swans star that his place in the starting line up is not guaranteed and add further competition for places within the squad, whilst also allowing Gnonto to showcase his quality to stake a claim for a regular spot in the side.

Former Pakistan fielding coach Steve Rixon accused the PCB of “disrespect and stupidity”, and said he had “not once” been paid on time. Rixon said that was the reason he quit his post after two years, deciding he “didn’t need it that much”, and opted to walk out than have to deal with what he believed to be a lack of professionalism on his employer’s part.”I never got paid on time,” Rixon told ESPNcricinfo. “It’s disrespectful, and the disrespect came from the fact that nothing was paid on time to the subsidiary staff. Indecision was the other thing. Whenever something needed to be done, and my contract was one of those things, that took over five months to get clarified. They thought I’d just roll over and accept it right at the eleventh hour but I didn’t do that as I’d basically had enough of it at that stage. I’ve been involved with coaching for 30 years. I enjoy the game a huge amount and I never want to finish a job at cricket not enjoying it. And that’s what probably would have happened if I’d stayed on there.”Refusing to point the finger directly at anyone, Rixon said the PCB needed to learn to treat overseas staff well. He pointed to the fact that the PCB’s conduct had put off Darren Berry from replacing Rixon as Pakistan’s fielding coach – the PCB’s clear first choice – and forgoing the services of such professionals was “stupidity”.”Darren Berry eventually refused to do the job, and I was left out at that particular time when things were going so well. When I say “stupid”, it’s those decisions I’m talking about. If you want overseas staff to come and do a job they’ve started to do which was going extremely well, don’t treat people like that.”Rixon, who had last month mentioned he was “horribly worried” Pakistan would slip back into old ways if they didn’t have someone to drum fielding standards into them, said some of the things that had concerned him had already started to happen. Pakistan were knocked out of the Asia Cup by Bangladesh on Wednesday. The tournament was notable for Pakistan in that it was the first time since the team appeared to have turned a corner under Mickey Arthur that fielding standards sharply dropped. Before the Bangladesh game, the catching rate at the tournament stood at a mere 30%, with eight chances put down in two crunch games alone. For Rixon, it highlighted the importance of not letting up on the Pakistan players who, he felt, tended to relax as soon as things began to go well.”I highlighted that if you don’t work hard with these kids and stay on their backs, you’re going to have the sort of things that have started to happen. Far, far too many easy catches were dropped. The fielding record that had improved, the catching record that had improved, and the run-out record that took them to the top of the table in world cricket is not going to happen again if these kids don’t continue to be pushed.”The concentration level of a lot of our players is very minimal when it comes to the fielding aspect, and we tend to relax when things start to go okay. When we think we’re getting on top is when the danger time starts; that’s the most vulnerable time for our boys. When one thing goes wrong, it’s like a snowball effect. That’s when things start to happen in bulk and that’s obviously what’s happened of late. But it’s more our level of concentration. You have to stay on top of these boys at all times. Don’t relax at any stage and keep the work ethic as high as possible because if you don’t, they’ll fall off as quick as they started.”Grant Bradburn, Pakistan’s new fielding coach, was a New Zealand cricketer when Rixon coached the side. And although Rixon said he didn’t know much of Bradburn’s fielding credentials, he did remember that he was a good fielder.”I think he’ll do a very good job, he’s a guy that has been from an era where fielding became a massive part of the way we train. When I was with NZ, all the provinces talked about the same philosophy of fielding and started to place emphasis on it. But they need to keep pushing those boys, and if they get that part right, I’m sure it’ll turn out okay.”The PCB, responding shortly after, issued a statement rejecting Steve Rixon’s “baseless” allegations”, saying they came “as a surprise”.”The PCB is disappointed by the baseless allegations made by former fielding coach Steve Rixon in a recent interview,” the statement read. “The PCB spokesman wishes to clarify that the Board has enjoyed cordial relations with all current and former foreign staff attached with national teams.”Mr. Steve Rixon was a good coach who worked hard with the players and certainly helped improve team’s fielding in the last two years. It comes as a surprise to us that Mr. Rixon made unfounded allegations against PCB.The PCB strongly refutes the allegations made by Mr. Rixon in his interview, the foreign coaching staff has full backing and support of the board.”

Mohammad Irfan in his follow through•CPL T20/ Getty Images

Brandon King overcame a torturous opening spell from Mohammad Irfan to record his maiden CPL fifty, leading the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots to a six-wicket win over Barbados Tridents on Saturday evening at Kensington Oval.Irfan claimed Chris Gayle with his first ball and snapped up Evin Lewis caught behind in his second over before making King hop around during the most economical four-over spell in the history of T20 cricket. But it was not enough to help the Barbados Tridents defend 147 as Steven Smith’s leaky leggies helped King get on track to finish with four fours and five sixes in his 60 off 49 balls. Ben Cutting and Tom Cooper took over from King in the 16th over and finished off the chase to put Patriots on six points, creating a four-way tie for first place on the CPL table.Holding patternThe Tridents got off to a modest start, ending the Powerplay at 34 for 0. Only three fours and a six were struck between Martin Guptill and Dwayne Smith as the pair also managed to rack up 17 dot balls in the first six overs. They fell off consecutive deliveries in the eighth over, bowled by Cutting. Guptill was sold out by Smith on a yes-no call to point as Anton Devcich threw down the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Lewis pulled off a one-handed stunner on the following ball at deep midwicket to leave the Tridents at 39 for 2.But the wickets actually stirred the Tridents innings to life as captain Jason Holder scored his maiden CPL half-century after promoting himself to No. 3. Holder slashed his first delivery for four through third man before setting his sights on Sandeep Lamichhane in the following over, slog-sweeping the legspinner for six. Holder and Shai Hope hit Lamichhane for 17 more in the 12th over.Holder could have been run-out for 31 in the 13th over. One ball after being tonked onto the Kensington Oval roof for six, Carlos Brathwaite had a chance to field off his own bowling on the off side, but his spin-around effort missed the stumps. Holder got another life on 38 when Cooper spilled him at long-on off Sheldon Cottrell. He brought up a 34-ball fifty with his third six whacked straight back over Brathwaite.Devilish doubleFollowing up his runout of Guptill, Devcich returned in the 18th over to break the 87-run Holder-Hope partnership, dismissing both men off back-to-back balls. Cooper made up for his earlier drop of Holder by clinging onto a chance at long-on to get rid of Hope for 26. Coming on strike after crossing with the ball in the air on Hope’s dismissal, Holder couldn’t get enough elevation on the next ball trying to clear Lewis at deep midwicket to put Devcich on a hat-trick.Tridents only managed 21 runs off the final 15 balls, stuttering through the end of their innings. Holder’s promotion also meant that Steven Smith, who had scored 63 in a Man-of-the-Match effort against Jamaica Tallawahs on Wednesday night, only faced three balls against the Patriots as the batting reshuffle, arguably, backfired.Irfan’s binary brush with perfectionThe towering Pakistan fast bowler began his unbroken four-over spell with 23 dot balls. It wasn’t just that the Patriots couldn’t score off him, with the exception of the two balls edged behind by Gayle and Lewis, nobody could lay a bat on him. Irfan’s first two overs were wicket-maidens, Gayle falling to a gem that squared him up and Lewis feathering a pull through to Pooran as well, though he seemed unhappy with the decision.King and Devon Thomas then proceeded to fan on every attempt at driving, poking, and nudging Irfan to get off strike. Nothing worked until the very last ball of Irfan’s spell, which King mishit off the toe of his bat down the ground before scampering one run. By the end of Irfan’s spell, Patriots were 18 for 2 in seven, their required run rate had climbed into double-digits with 130 needed off the final 13.King’s ransomThe 23-year-old Jamaican was on 15 off 32 balls after nine overs, having been handcuffed by Irfan ever since entering on the second ball of the chase. But Irfan’s work was undone by Steven Smith’s 10th over. Devon Thomas, who took 14 balls himself to get off the mark, clubbed the first ball for a straight six, which was followed a wide off which King got back on strike. King followed Thomas’ lead, smacking Smith for two more sixes off the next three balls before Thomas finished a 27-run frame with another six.The momentum-shifting over spurred King to pluck 35 runs off his next 10 balls. He singlehandedly wrecked Raymon Reifer for 22 off the 11th over to bring up a 42-ball half-century with another four smacked over cover. In the space of two overs, Patriots had plundered 49 runs and the required run rate was back to just 7.55. Thomas creamed Holder for four and six off the first two balls of the 12th and the pair ended up adding 88 for the third wicket. After a seven-over stretch where they couldn’t buy a run, suddenly the Tridents were giving them away at will and the Patriots cruised across the line with seven balls remaining.

Trinity Rodman shared the "learning experience" of the 2023 Women's World Cup despite being knocked out by Sweden in the round of 16.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

• Rodman spoke about her World Cup experience
• Reflected on the disappointing outcome
• Said tournament was opportunity to learn

• Getty Images
  

  WHAT HAPPENED?

  USWNT starlet Rodman, daughter of basketball legend Dennis Rodman, flew across the globe to Australia to participate in her first World Cup. But the dream of a historic three-peat came crashing down as the United States succumbed to their worst-ever finish at the tournament following a dramatic penalty shoot-out defeat to the European nation. However, Rodman believes that the disappointing outcome set an incredible learning curve for the young players.

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• WHAT RODMAN SAID

  Speaking to Rodman said: "The World Cup is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. The national team has the best of the best, some of which have been playing together for over 10 years. Everyone played with such grit and relentlessness – the intensity could be felt. Was our outcome disappointing? Yes, but it was a learning experience for me. There’s so much talent here. As a young player, it’s important to remain true to myself and play into my strengths to support the team."

  While advising athletes on how to recover from the losses, Rodman added: "To be successful, you must digest the defeats. Learning how to truly reflect on things is so important. If you never reflect on the defeats, you won’t learn – you’re going to keep repeating the same mistakes because you aren’t allowing yourself time to process how to fix it. Also making sure your mindset is strong, this isn’t the moment for pity or self-doubt. You must remain confident in your abilities to compete and improve. Remember you deserve to be here and trust in your abilities to be a skillful, talented force on the field."

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  The United States will be heading to Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics aiming to bring back the glory days after a horrific World Cup campaign. The USWNT last took home the gold medal in 2012 and received the bronze medal in 2020.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  Rodman will be back in action with Washington Spirit against the Utah Royals FC on Sunday in an NWSL fixture. After that she will join the USWNT to participate in the SheBelieves Cup where they will meet Japan in the semi-final.

Sri Lanka lost their first three wickets to Keshav Maharaj, but remain in a position to push for victory over the next three days, after taking a first innings lead of 161

The Report by Firdose Moonda13-Jul-2018
Keshav Maharaj gets a breakthrough for the visitors•AFPSri Lanka took control of the first Test on a 13-wicket day in Galle, where spinners dominated. After South Africa were shot out for 126 – their lowest total in Sri Lanka – with seven wickets falling to the spin trio of Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera and Lakshan Sandakan, Sri Lanka lost their first three wickets to Keshav Maharaj, but remain in a position to push for victory over the next three days, after taking a first innings lead of 161 runs.On a surface that is taking substantial, but not unplayable turn, anything over 300 would be daunting. For a South African side who woke the ghosts of India 2015, the lead is perhaps already too much.In South Africa’s last eight innings in the subcontinent, they have only managed to score more than 200 runs once and the last time they scored over 300 in Asia was in the Galle Test four years ago. While there are elements of technique that are wanting – the left-handers playing across the line is an example – their confidence is the bigger concern. Collapses of 6 for 51 and 4 for 11, which sandwiched the 64-run seventh-wicket stand between Faf du Plessis and Vernon Philander, would have done nothing to boost their belief.Herath made the first incision into South Africa at the end of the opening day when he removed Aiden Markram, and he did the same on the second morning when he beat nightwatchman Maharaj with an arm-ball. And then the wickets tumbled.Dean Elgar played across a Dilruwan Perera delivery that took the outside edge to offer first slip a catch, Hashim Amla was given out caught at short leg on review off Dilruwan, Temba Bavuma dragged a Sandakan ball onto his stumps as he swept, a shot he had employed with success earlier in his short innings and Quinton de Kock was bowled by Dilruwan, also playing across the line. Shortly after the first drinks, South Africa were 51 for 6, and left du Plessis with the tail.Philander showed the patience the top order lacked and defended solidly, while du Plessis tried to play a more positive role in also searching for runs. The pair ushered South Africa past their lowest total since readmission, 79, and over the 100 mark. Philander was fortunate when Sri Lanka missed a chance to review a Herath delivery that would have gone on to hit middle stump – the last of three opportunities they did not take – and reviewed successfully when he was given out two overs later. He faced 86 balls, only two fewer than du Plessis, before he was out for 18.Du Plessis, celebrating his 34th birthday, played with as much intent as he could and compiled 49. But when Philander went, he followed within three balls. After several inside-edges, du Plessis missed a Suranga Lakmal ball that nipped in and was bowled. Lakmal had not used himself before the 37th over but enjoyed the last bits of reward when he also bowled Rabada and had Steyn caught at first slip.Already low on morale, South Africa’s situation only worsened when Danuskha Gunathilaka and Dimuth Karunaratne put on 51 for the opening stand, denied Dale Steyn the two wickets he needs to overtake Shaun Pollock as South Africa’s leading Test wicket-taker but offered three other chances.Maharaj appealed for lbw against Gunathilaka, but the opener had shuffled far enough across enough to get umpire’s call on impact. Then, Gunathilaka lap-swept Maharaj in front of backward square but Bavuma could not hold on to the catch. Later, Gunathilaka reverse-swept Maharaj between the wicket-keeper and first slip. And this time, Maharaj got his man, and two others, when Gunathilaka picked out deep mid-wicket, Dhananjaya de Silva, who was bowled and Kusal Mendis given out lbw.As he had done in the first innings, Karunaratne anchored Sri Lanka and became only the second batsman after Kumar Sangakkara to score a century and a half-century against South Africa in a Test. He took on the spinners with success, used his feet well and his placement was impressive but he was eventually undone with Kagiso Rabada having him caught at slip.There was no further damage done to Sri Lanka before the close, which gives them the resources to add to their total on the third day.

Leeds United made the decision to appoint Daniel Farke to lead their charge to land an instant return to the Premier League at the first time of asking this season.

The German head coach has arrived with a proven track record of being able to win promotion from the Championship as he won two league titles at this level during his time with Norwich City.

Farke also has the ability and willingness to develop young talent. The 46-year-old admitted that he wanted to work with and improve up-and-coming prospects, which paid off throughout his spell in East Anglia.

Players such as James Maddison, Ben Godfrey, Max Aarons, and Emiliano Buendia, but to name a few, progressed under his management at Carrow Road, and he has already shown signs of doing the same at Leeds.

17-year-old Archie Gray has played in all 11 of the club's league matches this term and supporters may be wondering who the next prospect to come through will be.

One young talent who could emerge as a first-team option for Farke in the future is U21 defender Kris Moore, who could be the dream heir to Joe Rodon at Elland Road.

How many appearances has Kris Moore made for Leeds?

The 19-year-old stopper is yet to make his competitive debut for the first-team but has made 56 appearances for the U21 side to date, along with 28 outings at U18 level.

He has featured in 47 Premier League 2 matches and was an unused substitute for Farke against Shrewsbury in the EFL Cup back in August, which suggests that the teenage ace has done enough to catch the manager's eye in order to be trusted to be on the bench.

Moore, who has played the majority of his academy career as a centre-back but can also play as a right-back, showcased his quality as a defender in the EFL Trophy for the U21s last season.

As per Sofascore, the Thorp Arch prospect started three matches against Tranmere Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, and Crewe Alexandra, and caught the eye with 2.7 tackles and interceptions per game and an impressive aerial duel success rate of 75%.

It is a small sample size to work from but it does provide an insight into the type of defender Moore is as he is able to make multiple defensive interventions per match, which points to his proactive defending, and has shown himself to be an aerially dominant titan at the back.

How has Rodon performed this season?

The central defender is on a season-long loan from Tottenham Hotspur and has showcased his quality at Championship level with some commanding displays at the back.

Rodon has made 2.4 tackles and interceptions per clash, which is more than any other Leeds centre-back, and displayed his aerial prowess with a duel success rate of 69% in the air.

Matches

Eight

Sofascore rating

7.09

Clean sheets

Three

% of duels won

65

Rodon's Championship performance for Leeds

This shows that, like Moore, the Wales international is a proactive central defender who is also able to dominate the opposition when it comes to dealing with long passes and crosses into the box.

Therefore, the 19-year-old academy talent, who Leeds TV pundit Ben Parker claimed "loves defending", could be Farke's dream heir to Rodon when the Spurs colossus' loan comes to an end next summer.

The German head coach could look to bring through the teenage ace next year and bed him in as a like-for-like replacement for the Welsh gem, if he can translate his youth team form over to first-team level.