It’s not all gone their way this season, but Chelsea still look like a team heading in the right direction.

Sure, they’ve lost to the likes of Leeds United and Atalanta, but Enzo Maresca’s side have also demolished Barcelona and, despite going down to ten men, held Premier League leaders Arsenal to a 1-1 draw last month.

Moreover, the Blues have an incredibly young team stuffed with some brilliantly talented attackers like Cole Palmer and Estevao.

However, one area Chelsea could certainly improve is the defence, which could explain reports linking them to an international who has been put on the same level as Virgil Van Dijk and William Saliba.

Chelsea target world-class defender

Chelsea’s desire to improve their backline is no secret.

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After all, in just the last couple of months, the West Londoners have been linked with some incredible centre-backs, like former academy gem Marc Guehi and Nottingham Forest’s £79m Murillo.

However, it looks like the Blues are now looking further afield, at an international superstar who could be on the level of Van Dijk and Saliba.

At least, that is according to a recent report from Italy, which claims Chelsea are among several teams interested in Alessandro Bastoni.

In fact, the report has revealed that Maresca is crazy about the Inter Milan defender, who played a key role in the club’s Champions League run last season.

However, there are two potential barriers to the move: Inter’s reluctance to lose the player, and the fact that he has supposedly said no to the Blues before.

However, even if it proves costly and complicated to get over the line with reports over the summer suggesting he could be worth £87m, this is a transfer Chelsea should pursue. Indeed, Bastoni has the potential to be a world-class signing in the vein of Van Dijk and Saliba.

Why Bastoni is as good as Van Dijk and Saliba

Okay, so aside from the fact that all three play for a top team in one of Europe’s top five leagues, where has this comparison between Bastoni and the two Premier League stars come from?

Well, it stems from content creator Nieve Petruzziello, who in October of last year claimed that the Italian centre-back is “as good as Van Dijk and Saliba.”

That might sound like a bold take to those unfamiliar with Serie A, but it’s really not.

For example, like his contemporaries, the 26-year-old has established himself as a crucial part of one of the top teams in European football.

Since moving to the San Siro in the summer of 2019, he has made 277 appearances, of which 257 have been starts, scored seven goals and provided 28 assists.

The Casalmaggiore-born monster has also established himself as a core part of the national team, winning 41 caps and scoring three goals.

The final surface level similarity is something he shares more with the Dutchman: his trophy cabinet.

Across his career, the 6 foot 3 titan has won two Serie A titles, two Italian Cups, three Italian Super Cups, and even started a game in Italy’s triumphant Euro 2020 run.

Subscribe to the newsletter for deeper transfer insights Crave more on transfer targets like Bastoni and the numbers that back them? Subscribe to the newsletter for concise, data-driven scouting breakdowns and transfer analysis that sharpen your view of football moves and player profiles. Subscribe Subscribe to the newsletter for deeper transfer insights Crave more on transfer targets like Bastoni and the numbers that back them? Subscribe to the newsletter for concise, data-driven scouting breakdowns and transfer analysis that sharpen your view of football moves and player profiles.

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With all that said, another way to illustrate that the Inter ace is on a similar level to Saliba and Van Dijk is to examine the underlying numbers, in which he ranks closely with them.

Bastoni & Van Dijk & Saliba

Statistics per 90

Bastoni

Van Dijk

Saliba

Non-Penalty Expected G+As

0.12

0.08

0.09

Short Passing Accuracy

95.4

96.2

95.8

Medium Passing Accuracy

92.7

95.4

96.1

Live Passes

74.5

73.2

74.2

Tackle + Interceptions

2.55

2.54

2.46

Shots Blocked

0.49

0.43

0.44

Passes Blocked

0.45

0.30

0.30

All Stats via FBref for the 24/25 League Season

Last season, these metrics included things like non-penalty expected goals plus assists, live passes, shot and medium-passing accuracy, tackles plus interceptions, and more, all per 90.

In other words, the 26-year-old proved that, like the two Premier League stars, he is elite on the ball and off it.

Ultimately, it would be a difficult transfer to get over the line, but Chelsea should be doing all they can to sign Bastoni in 2026, as he could become Maresca’s Saliba or Van Dijk-esque leader.

Related Big name player has privately said that he would join Chelsea in January

It could lead to a very popular transfer.

Posts ByEmilio Galantini

With their batsmen in ominous form, Orissa placed themselves in acommandable position on a day which witnessed the visitors amass 470for seven in their first innings even though none of the main rungetters reached the coveted 100. At stumps on the third day, Orissaensured themselves of a massive 178 run lead over Bihar in the EastZone Ranji Trophy match at the Keenan Stadium in Jamshedpur onTuesday.Resuming at 147 for 2, overnight batsmen Sanjay Raul and Pradeep Dasrealised the first significant partnership of the Orissa innings. Thepair which came together at the fall of P Mullick’s wicket forged a152-run stand for the third wicket. While Das got 88, Raul hit 98. Thepair was separated when Raul fell to a catch by Dhoni off VikashKumar. Raul during his 211-minute stay at the crease faced 154 ballsand found the signboards on 17 occasions.This brought skipper RR Parida to the crease and with Das for company,the two added 89 runs for the third wicket. After the departure of Dasin the 98th over of the innings, Jai Chandra joined his skipper andfrustrated the Bihar bowlers further with a 83-run partnership for thefifth wicket. Parida (98) was dismissed after a 202-minute stay at thecrease during which he received 171 balls and hit 11 boundaries. ButJai Chandra continued on his way even as he lost stumper Y Mohanty(19) and Sanjay Sathpathy (8). Jai Chandra, who remained unbeaten on89, faced 172 balls and hit nine fours and a six.

Northlands Road, the Home of Hampshire Cricket: 1885-2000All quotations from the writing of John Arlott”Back once more on the ground where the backways and the little odd rooms – conjured out of accidental bulges in the old pavilions – are familiar as home. To be sure, the old pros’ room has been renovated; its spike-pocked floor renewed and showers, baths and basins installed. Still though the Southampton ground has an air of improvisation, of gradual growth, additions and after-thoughts merging into a unity like the photos, nick-nacks and pieces of china which, over the years, accumulated on our grandparents mantelpieces” (Cricket Journal 1958)Hampshire’s Southampton Grounds:Antelope 1839 First match(East side of Love Lane) 1842 Daniel Day curator, Hants v England1845 MCC beat Hants – Day moved to Itchen*(Cricket continued there under Mr Brooks)Itchen Ground 1845 Daniel Day moved to ground*(South side of Woolston Road) 1846 First match1851 Day to East Hants Ground, Southsea1850s Ground built on1864 Major cricket returned to Antelope untilNorthlands Road 1884 Eight acres leased for £160 pa1885 Ground opened & first matches1893 Freehold purchased (£5,400)1895 First season of Championship Cricket”1895, that year of transformation, saw also the beginning of the replacement of the old….by the basis of the present building complex. It would normally be categorised as Edwardian; as so many of the county pavilions are or were. With its bright red tiles and brickwork, white woodwork and open to the air in perpetual optimistic expectation of sunshine, it is – or is it that nostalgia makes it seem so? – a generous, essentially summer place.” (“A Summer Place” Hampshire Handbook 1985)1896 Pavilion Facade erected
1896 Southampton FC play there for 2 seasons
1897 Ladies Pavilion built
1911 (White) Scoreboard erected
1956 New office block opened
1959 Indoor School built
1960s Two pavilions joined
1980s County Club developed
1990s Sold for housing development
Adapted: Cricket Grounds of Hampshire – Association of Cricket Statisticians 1988Notable Events at Northlands Road:2000 Hampshire’s last-ever match at Southampton v Notts in the National League. Prittipaul’s 152 v Derbyshire was the highest score for Hampshire in a first innings on a home ground (not debut)
1999 Robin Smith captained Hampshire in their first ever National League match
1998 Hampshire lost to Lancashire in the Nat West Semi-Final. Chasing 253 they collapsed to 28-5 and lost by 43 runs. Since cup cricket began in 1963 Hampshire won only one semi-final at Northlands Road (B&H Cup v Somerset 1992)
1997 Hick & Moody (Worcestershire) scored 438* for 3rd wicket at Southampton – Hick’s innings of 303* was the highest ever v Hampshire.
1996 Dimitri Mascarenhas took 6 wickets on debut for Hampshire. Kevan James took 4 wickets in 4 balls and scored a century v India – a world record. In the match v Essex the match aggregate of 1523 for 36 wickets is the highest in Hampshire’s history. Cardigan Connor took 9-38 v Gloucs – a ground record.
1995 Keech (98) & Whitaker (97) both narrowly missed their centuries in a tied Sunday League match v Worcestershire. West Indies scored 696-6 dec.
1994 Hampshire’s 603-7dec v Surrey was their highest ever at Southampton
1993 Future Hampshire batsman Matthew Hayden hit a century at Northlands Road for Australia
1992 Udal with 8-50 v Sussex achieved his best bowling for Hampshire
1991 Chris Smith scored a century in the Nat West quarter-final v Nottinghamshire but did not play in the final because he left Hampshire in August to take up a post abroad.
1990 Gloucestershire were particularly disappointed when Hampshire beat them by scoring 446-8. Hampshire also scored 600-8 dec v Sussex – their first score of 600 on the ground.
1989 Raj Maru took 8-41 v Kent
1988 Hampshire won their first Cup Final at Lord’s but on the next day their celebrating captain Mark Nicholas retired hurt without scoring in the Sunday League v Gloucestershire
1987 Hampshire 2nd XI lost to Derbyshire in the Bain Dawes Final.
1986 The captain and vice-captain Nicholas & Terry were batting at the end of the Sunday victory v Lancashire, celebrating Hampshire’s title success. Bob Parks dismissed six victims in an innings v Notts – equalling the ground record.
1985 Robin Smith achieved his career best bowling of 2-11 v Surrey
1984 Trevor Jesty Scored 32 in an over off Robin Boyd-Moss (Northants) – the most ever at Southampton
1983 Three West Indians, Greenidge, Marshall and Lynch all scored centuries in the match with Surrey
1982 Nick Pocock invited Worcestershire to bat in the Sunday League but Ormrod & Patel set a League record with 224 for 1st wicket
1981 The former Hampshire opener Richard Lewis played for Dorset when they beat Hampshire in the B&H Cup
1980 Roger Tolchard a former Hampshire 2nd XI player caught six Hampshire players in the match v Leicestershire. Tim Tremlett opened the batting and carried his bat for 70* in the same match.
1979 Bob Stephenson had one season as Hampshire’s second wicket-keeper/captain (the first was C Robson)
1978 Barry Richards and Andy Roberts left mid-season before Hampshire won the Sunday League title for the second time.
1977 The only double champion, Peter Sainsbury, retired before the season began, having played since 1955
1976 Trevor Jesty enjoyed his only 7 wicket haul (7-75 v Somerset) and scored his first century (134 v Gloucs)
1975 Hampshire achieved their highest limited overs score of 371-4 v Glamorgan in the Gillette Cup. Gordon Greenidge scored 259 v Sussex and went to 50, 100, 150, 200 & 250 with a six – his total of 13 sixes was a ground record.
“It is hard to select a particular innings of Barry Richards as outstanding because, if he stays in long, he will either have given a rich display of stroke-making or batted with consummate skill on a bowler’s wicket. It is hard though not to believe that, against the Australians at Southampton in 1975, he spoke his heart in the idion he commands most fully. Thomson, Hurst, Walker, Higgs and Mallett bowled; Richards played two innings of 96 and (retired hurt) 69, which declared his fitness to stand high on the level of Test cricket from which he is debarred….He played himself in with cold determination. Then, as soon as he was sure of his touch, he unleashed a fury of strokes….tossing his wicket away to a bad ball when a century was his for the taking.” (John Arlott’s Book of Cricketers 1979)1974 Bob Herman took 6-15 v Glamorgan but rain prevented victory and Hampshire finished runners-up in the Championship.
1973 Northants came to Northlands Road in second place, lost in two days and finished the season in third – Hampshire were champions.
1972 John Holder took a hat-trick before retiring to become an umpire.1971 New Zealander David O’Sullivan impressed v Gloucestershire as Hampshire clinched the 2nd XI title
1970 Barry Richards left the Rest of the World side in the `Test’ v England to score a Sunday century v Glamorgan
1969 Hampshire’s first Sunday League match in June was `Butch’ White’s benefit. Hampshire finished 2nd.
1968 In his first season, Barry Richards started batting at number 4 but scored more after he moved to opener – finishing with 2314 runs.
1967 Gordon Greenidge batted at number 7 for Hampshire 2nd XI when they won the title for the first time
1966 Hampshire’s former `leggie’ Alan Castell surprised the West Indies with 7-58 in the match
1965 Peter Sainsbury took 7-30 and scored 70 in a Gillette Cup match v Norfolk
1964 Former Pompey soccer player Mike Barnard scored 123 v Australia – his sixth and final hundred, of which three were v tourists.
“Go to the County Ground on any day in the cricket season – or, for that matter, on a good many days outside it – and somewhere between the indoor school and the pavilion you are likely to meet a comfortable, well-fed-looking man going in one direction when he obviously wants to go in several. He has a rosy face, a quizzical look in his blue eyes and one eyebrow goes up as he asks you wistfully, out of the side of his mouth, “ave you seen so-and-so?”This is `The Coach’. Arthur Holt finds that title convenient: it saves him the embarrasment of telling ground staff boys that they must call him Mister Holt and not Arthur.” (An Appreciation 1963)1963 Derek Shackleton took 7-30 v Surrey – his best at Southampton
1962 Danny Livingstone, dropped first ball v Surrey (on a hat-trick) scored 200
1961 `Butch’ White took 7-61 v Nottinghamshire – his best at Southampton in the year that Hampshire won their first Championship.
1960 Mervyn Burden took 8-96 v Lancashire but Hampshire lost”Hampshire v South Africans 1960: In almost tropical sunshine the South Africans took Test batting practice at a tempo mounting from an early halting uncertainty to a glorious crescendo of strokes. The Southampton wicket was a friendly invitation to a run-making party – perfect hospitality for the batsmen…. McLean …. threatened avalanches with a six into Northlands Road. But upon that challenge the heavily shouldered and deep-chested David White peeled off his sweater and heaved a fast ball through McLean’s drive. It was White’s hundredth wicket in first-class cricket: he will batter down many a hundred more before he is done – but not without labour on such pitches as this.” (Cricket Journal 3 1960)1959 Three Test-playing county captains Cowdrey, Watson and Washbrook were all injured during matches at Southampton.
1958 Hampshire’s new captain Ingleby-Mackenzie started with a victory, a duck and a century v Kent. He led Hampshire to 2nd place for the first time in their history.
1957 Tom Dewdney took a hat-trick for West Indies
1956 `Gunner’ Denis Compton (Arsenal FC) played his last innings at Southampton (Keith Miller of the RAAF may have been a gunner but never a `Gunner’!)
1955 Neville Rogers deputised as captain for Desmond Eagar in the last five Championship matches and was undefeated although Hampshire were beaten by South Africa. Hampshire finished third for the first time with Roy Marshall in his first full season for them.
“Few cricketers have had the quality to draw people to cricket grounds. Fewer still could do so, yet send them away by their failure….Roy Marshall did it more than once. No cricketer who had ever appeared for the county had been able to attract crowds to Hampshire grounds as he did….As a member of the West Indian touring side of 1950 Marshall made 135 against Hampshire at Southampton and although Everton Weekes scored a double century at the other end, Marshall’s was remembered as one of the most brilliant innings ever played at the ground.” (John Arlott’s Book of Cricketers 1979)1954 HRH the Duke of Edinburgh brought his XI to the county ground
1953 West Indies batsman Roy Marshall made his Hampshire debut v Australia
1952 Derek Shackleton & Vic Cannings bowled unchanged in the match v Kent who were dismissed for 32, the lowest by Hampshire’s opponents on ground. Arthur Fagg held seven catches in the match for Kent, a ground record.
1951 Two openers, Neville Rogers and Jackie McGlew (South Africa) made centuries in the tourist match
1950 The match v Kent ended in a tie. Alan Shirreff played for Kent having played for Hampshire in the previous Hampshire tied match.
1949 Charlie Knott took 12 wickets in the match v Notts
1948 Jim Bailey did the match double v Leicestershire and the season’s double”Mervyn Burden’s account of his first appearance at the County Ground is one of the masterpieces of spoken autobiography: “I’d never been to the County Ground in my life before….I’ve never felt so nervous in my life. I went up and bowled my first ball and it flew clean over the top of the nets and smashed one of the windows in the dining-room. Someone gave me another one and as I walked back to bowl I was wondering what the dickens I should do this time. I didn’t have to worry. Johnny Arnold was batting in the next net and as I turned to run in he hit an on-drive. I had my back to him and never saw it coming: it caught me a terrific crack on the ankle and I couldn’t bowl for a fortnight. Still I thought I had better show willing so I turned up the next morning to see if there was anything I could do and they sent me out to help Ernie on the pitch. I hadn’t been there a couple of minutes before I kicked a bucket of whiting across the square so they sent me home until my ankle was better.” (Book of Cricketers 1979)”Hampshire searched their resources for a ready-made pace bowler with no success at all. So, at the April nets of 1948, WK Pearce, the county chairman ordered the entire playing strength to bowl `seamers’. The staff rolled up their sleeves: Desmond Eagar recalls with some amusement his attempts to emulate Bill Voce, and several sets of hardening muscles were tugged violently in unfamiliar directions. The only profit the county could show for this experiment was the discovery that Derek Shackleton had bowled `with the seam’ for his club (but) no one dreamt that the morning’s search had unearthed the greatest single asset in Hampshire’s post-war cricket.” (“Derek Shackleton” in John Arlott’s Book of Cricketers 1979)1947 Quadruple Nelson – Kent won by 9 wickets after scoring 444 (4 x 111)
1946 County Championship cricket (v Worcestershire) returned on 11 May(Donald `Hooky’ Walker died on active service during World War Two)Southampton, most familiar of all cricket grounds for me, looked battered still from its war experiences and the weather, dully, did little brighten it. Rain was never far away and the wicket was damp and responsive to spin. Donald Walker would have put his head down and used his dancing feet to reach the pitch of the ball: but Donald will never play cricket again and for me the Southampton ground will always carry a sad memory of him.(Indian Summer 1946)1939 Leicestershire were Hampshire’s last opponents at Southampton before the war
1938 Johnny Arnold and Neil McCorkell enjoyed century partnerships in both innings v Kent
1937 McCorkell made the only century for Hampshire at Southampton in the season
1936 South African Len Creese took 8 wickets v Lancashire
1935 Future coach and Southampton footballer Arthur Holt made his debut
1934 GS Boyes bowled 80 overs in one innings v Notts
1933 Mead scored 150 but Leicestershire avoided defeat thanks to Armstrong who scored 84* and 164
1932 With Mead’s century v Derbyshire he had then completed 100 v every county. Hampshire’s 30 all out v Notts was their lowest ever at Southampton – Jim Bailey took 7-7 in the same match.
1931 Double international Johnny Arnold scored a Southampton century v Northamptonshire
1930 On the last morning v Nottinghamshire, Notts fielded without changing as Hampshire only required one run to win.
“In 1930 the ground was full to see if Don Bradman could complete his 1000 runs before the end of May. The match began on the last day of the month and Hampshire winning the toss, batted first, which threatened Bradman’s opportunity. George Brown resisted characteristically until he was run out for 56 of 151. Bradman went in first, late on that Saturday afternoon needing 46 for his 1000 but under threat of rain. He had made 43 when the storm broke; Jack Newman bowled him a full toss; Bradman hit it for four and everyone ran for shelter.” (Hampshire Handbook 1985)1929 Tennyson played a captain’s innings in June with 125* v Glamorgan
1928 Double Harrys: Harold Harry Gibbons opened for Worcs and William Henry (Harry) Ashdown and Harold Hardinge opened for Kent.
1927 Tennyson made the fastest first-class century for Hampshire on the ground v Gloucestershire in 55 minutes
1926 Future MCC secretary Ronnie Aird made his only hundred at Northlands Road
1925 Irish amateur TO Jameson made a century v Warwickshire batting at number 8
1924 Alec Kennedy took his second Southampton hat-trick v Gloucs. Hampshire beat Surrey by one wicket.
1923 Hearne & Hendren added a 3rd wicket record of 375 for Middlesex
1922 Alec Kennedy took 7-71 and scored 70 v Sussex who still won by 10 runs. He took 190 wickets in the season, a record for Hampshire
1921 Australia with 708-7 dec made the highest first-class innings on the ground. Phil Mead’s 280* v Notts was the highest Hampshire innings on the ground.
“The cricket grounds where we watched the heroes of our boyhood can never be in our minds solely the fields of the current generation of players. When Philip Mead died during the winter, the BBC met the demands of topicality by broadcasting an obituary talk. It was also their idea that during the cricket season and from the County Ground at Southampton, a subsequent and longer piece should be put out in his memory. When they asked me to make this broadcast I wondered if I had not written and said all that I could about him. Yet the place seemed to create a different setting and a different demand. That monumentally reliable batsman, Philip Mead, is dead. But we who were boys in Hampshire in my generation – or, for that matter, in the two generations on either side of it – can never, as long as we live, see this County Ground at Southampton without remembering him. Even now, when I buy an evening paper and turn to the stop press cricket scores, I feel as if I am going to read once more that Philip Mead – a hundred and twenty-two not out – has saved the Hampshire innings.” (Cricket Journal 1958)1920 Brown and EIM Barrett achieved a record partnership of 321 for the 2nd wicket v Gloucestershire
1919 All Championship matches during this season were played over two days but play was extended and in two matches (v Gloucs & Surrey) the teams exceeded 600 runs in a day – ground records.
1914 Fast bowler Arthur Jacques took 7-51 v Warwickshire in his last season. He was killed in action during the Great War. Hampshire finished 5th – their best to that date.
1913 CH Abercrombie scored a century on his Hampshire debut v Oxford University (not his first-class debut)
1912 Hampshire defeated Australia for the first and only time
1911 Hampshire scored 463-8 v Kent – 105 short of a victory target of 568 but a record 4th innings score at the ground
1910 Lancashire scored 404-5 to win the match. CB Lewellyn was the first Hampshire player to do the double
1909 Jack Newman took a hat-trick v Australia”If you look at the railings in front of the pavilion on the county cricket ground at Southampton you will see, just above ground level, a number of dents, curving in towards the pavilion. Almost forty years ago….Jack Newman, pointed to those dents and said to me, only half-humorously – “see those dents – all made by chaps edging my faster ball.” Jack was one of the greatest of Hampshire cricketers. He was the last survivor of the four great professionals – Philip Mead, George Brown, & Alec Kennedy were the others – who, for years carried Hampshire cricket on their strong backs and were, arguably, as fine a group as any county has ever possessed at the same time.” (1967 in Arlott on Cricket 1985)1908 24 year-old John Badcock from Bournemouth took 26 wkts in six matches at Southampton and 212 wkts in three seasons but never played again after 1908.
1907 Wicket-keeper James Stone scored 97* in the victory v Derbyshire
1906 J Greig who later became a priest opened the batting v Derbyshire. The Rev WV Jephson appeared in the same match.
1905 AJL Hill’s scored two centuries in the match v Somerset (only Mead 1913, Richards 1976 and Hayden 1997 have equalled the feat at Southampton)
1904 Webb scored 162* v Somerset in his benefit match
1903 The victory against Derbyshire was Hampshire’s only success of the season
1902 Author Hesketh-Prichard took 6-39 in the Sussex total of 72 but Hampshire lost by 8 wickets.
1901 South African CB Llewellyn hit 216 for Hampshire v South Africa in the tourists’ first match in England. Hampshire made 538 and Hill and Greig also made centuries. Lewellyn also took 14-171 v Worcs, the only instance of 14 wickets in a match for Hampshire on the ground.
1900 Hampshire lost the services of Wynyard, Poore and Heseltine to military service in the Boer War
1899 ER Bradford was called for throwing in the match v Australia
1898 The match v Yorkshire was Hampshire’s lowest-ever match aggregate (235 for 30 wickets). It was Harry Baldwin’s benefit match but finished in one day and Baldwin made a loss on the event.
1897 Bainbridge & Diver of Warwickshire did not bowl in the match v Warwickshire – (all eleven of Hampshire bowled)
1896 EG Wynyard scored 268 for Hampshire v Yorkshire
1895 The match v Derbyshire was particularly significant because it was Hampshire’s first home match in the County Championship. Walter Mead (Essex) took 17-119 – record match figures on the ground
1894 The victory v Sussex was the first in any match after opponents had declared
1893 Future Club President AJL Hill joined Hampshire as a batsman
1892 Dr.Russell Bencraft became captain of the side
1891 Winchester won the Challenge Cup for the second consecutive season
1890 The leading batsman and bowler (Wynyard and Barton) were both Military Officers
1889 The groundsman’s donkey disappeared, leading to a 10/- reward
1888 Tom Soar was engaged as the new groundsman
1887 FE Lacey’s innings of 323* v Norfolk remains the highest on the ground and in a minor county match
1886 Lt Col J Fellowes was Hampshire’s player-secretary
1885 Hampshire moved to Northlands Road from the Antelope Ground in Southampton.
1879 The County Club was reorganised with Russell Bencraft as secretary
1876 W Mycroft (Derbyshire) took 17-103 on the Antelope Ground – a record against Hampshire.
1865 First first-class victory v Surrey at Antelope Ground Southampton
1864 Formation of the modern county club.Dave AllenHCCC Heritage 2000

Shane Warne has delivered a broadside at Australia’s selection chairman Rod Marsh for the decision to recall Peter Siddle ahead of Pat Cummins for the fifth Investec Ashes Test at The Oval.Siddle was ignored by Marsh and the coach Darren Lehmann for the two previous Tests played on seaming wickets at Edgbaston and Trent Bridge, and was known to be particularly upset by his absence from the XI for the pivotal fourth match. However another green-tinged pitch at The Oval moved the selectors to include him in place of Josh Hazlewood, having earlier seemed set to choose the younger Cummins.The retiring captain Michael Clarke was seen in animated discussion with Marsh before the side was named, and after play began Warne expressed in the strongest possible terms that Siddle should not have played in a dead Test when there was an opportunity to have Cummins gain valuable experience.”I don’t think anyone thought Peter Siddle should have played in this Test match,” Warne said on commentary for Channel Nine. ” I can understand the conditions where Peter Siddle would have played but to me it looks like it’s a selection that should have been for the last Test match and while we got that wrong last Test match, let’s play him this Test match.”I just can’t understand why Pat Cummins is not playing in this Test match. Peter Siddle will do a good job – that’s irrelevant because he should have played the last Test. For me they’ve got the selection wrong again and Rod Marsh has to be accountable for that. There’s been so many selection issues this series they’ve just got wrong. Someone has to be accountable.”They’ve got Bangladesh coming up which Peter Siddle won’t go to and you’ve got a 23-year old Pat Cummins. What an opportunity to look at him in a Test match here. I just can’t understand it. I just could not believe it when the team was announced today.”The Siddle selection is the latest in a series of hotly-debated calls this series, where a heavily- favoured Australian side has fallen well short of expectations. Shane Watson and Brad Haddin dropped out of the team after the first Test, but when the wicketkeeper made himself available again after withdrawing from the Lord’s Test for personal reasons he was ignored. It was a move that miffed numerous members of the touring squad.At Trent Bridge, the selectors delayed informing the team of the XI to take the field until shortly before the toss, and in dropping Mitchell Marsh for his brother Shaun abandoned a long-held commitment to playing five bowlers. Shaun Marsh was out cheaply in both innings and the bowling attack was left unbalanced by the absence of an extra option.Lehmann has conceded that this was a mistake, and has also suggested that two separate squads should have been chosen for the West Indies and England instead of naming one group for the two tours. However Marsh has defended the work of his panel, saying he could not think of any other cricketers they could have picked for the trip, and that deliberations over the team for the fourth Test were the hardest he had ever experienced.

Surrey 227 for 5 (Burns 92) trail Derbyshire 313 (Hughes 96, T Curran 5-71, Ansari 4-61) by 86 runs
ScorecardRory Burns made 92 before falling to Wes Durston•Getty Images

After nearly decade without a first-class trophy Surrey hardly need to be reminded how tough county cricket, regardless of the division, can be. But with promotion back to Division One just a handful of bonus points or a few days of rain away, Surrey’s young and ambitious side were given one, perhaps final, reminder that regardless of what higher honours may await, the county game is hard, hard work.There are few counties that contrast so markedly with Surrey than Derbyshire. But despite their obvious differences off the field, such an imbalance was not evident on it. After a second consecutive day of tense, gritty cricket Derbyshire are just about ahead in a fascinating and oscillating encounter.That there was no stand-out performer for Derbyshire is perhaps appropriate on a day in which their lower-order frustrated Surrey with the bat before the same men choked them with the ball. Surrey will resume on the third day still trailing Derbyshire’s first innings total of 313 by 86 and with five wickets in hand to narrow the deficit.A draw would be enough to seal promotion and Surrey could of course, still go onto win this match, but it has already proven harder than many would have initially imagined.The day began with Surrey harbouring hopes of swiftly ending Derbyshire’s innings but, despite Chesney Hughes falling four short of his seventh first-class century, the lower order delayed Surrey long enough to extend the morning session to allow them to take the tenth wicket. An energetic partnership of 50 between Matt Critchley and Tony Palladino, who both scored 31, elevated Derbyshire beyond 300 before Tom Curran completed his second five-wicket haul in three matches.Having lost the toss Surrey would have been happy with restricting Derbyshire to 313 but given the score at the start of the day they would have perhaps hoped for slightly better.Derbyshire continued to confound expectations with the ball as Surrey’s hopes of an easy ride in response were efficiently struck down. Only Rory Burns, who scored a pugnacious 92, passed 36 for Surrey in a display that lacked patience against some probing bowling.Indeed it was undue haste that caused the demise of Arun Harinath, Surrey’s first wicket to fall, when, having outlasted excellent new-ball spells from Ben Cotton and Mark Foottit, he flashed hard at a wide first delivery bowled by Palladino and edged to second slip.Kumar Sangakkara was perhaps associated with the first hack of his career when at lunch he discovered his Twitter account had been broken into and a rather embarrassing photo posted. He could therefore be excused if he had other things on his mind when he became the second wicket to fall, caught behind off Palladino to leave Surrey 48 for 2.It was then that Burns fought fire with fire, abandoning caution he took to Derbyshire’s bowlers, striking 15 boundaries in a superb counter-attacking innings marked by punchy checked-drives and a dominant top hand. Burns’ partnership of 83 with Ben Foakes threatened to pull the match away from Derbyshire.They had other ideas, however. The introduction of spin did for Foakes, who fell for a frustratingly unfulfilled 31. After a handful more boundaries from Burns the match had another turn when he inexplicably chipped an innocuous delivery from Wes Durston to mid-off, leaving Surrey 150 for 4.When Steven Davies fell to the 19 year-old legspinner Critchley less than ten overs later Surrey still trailed by 141 runs with just five wickets in hand. Indeed things could have been worse when Zafar Ansari chipped a full ball to Billy Godleman at midwicket who dropped a straightforward chance.Ansari and Gary Wilson eventually made it to the close unscathed but that Surrey will have been the more relieved of the two teams at stumps said a lot. Derbyshire know better than anyone how hard promotion to Division One is, and they are making Surrey work for it.

Chhattisgarh and Manipur made another case to be awarded the BCCI’s full membership as they made a presentation to the board’s affiliation committee in Bangalore on Sunday.Full membership would not only give both states – currently associate members – an annual revenue in excess of Rs 20 crore (approx. $3.03mn) but more importantly, will facilitate their entry into all the senior-level tournaments conducted by the BCCI.”We made a presentation to the BCCI affiliation committee today. We were asked to present our case. Now that we have explained all the activities, we hope that the BCCI takes our efforts into consideration and awards us full membership,” Rajesh Dave, secretary of Chhattisgarh State Cricket Sangh, told ESPNcricinfo.Both the states have been allowed to participate in the BCCI’s junior tournaments but lack of participation in the Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy has hampered the progress of cricket there. Besides, with the board’s grant of approximately Rs 75 lakh (US$114,000) annually to its associate members, the developing states find it difficult to establish a structured development programme.However, CSCS and Manipur Cricket Association have been putting in a lot of effort to develop cricket in their jurisdiction. Both the states put in consistent performances in the BCCI’s affiliate and associate members’ tournament before it was disbanded two years ago as well as impressed at times during the Under-22 tournaments.The committee also considered Mizoram Cricket Association’s application to be awarded BCCI’s affiliate membership. The three-member committee, comprising BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur, Vidarbha Cricket Association president Prakash Dixit and Goa Cricket Association vice-president Dr Shekhar Salkar, will now forward its recommendations for consideration at next month’s annual general meeting.If the board decides to award membership to either of the states, it will result in additional votes in the BCCI’s list. At present, the board has 30 full members. Due to the volatile election scenario, last year’s AGM had not considered Chhatisgarh’s plea.Chhattisgarh, along with Sikkim Cricket Association, Manipur Cricket Association and Bihar Cricket Association are BCCI’s associate members. Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh happen to be affiliate members, with Mizoram likely to join the ranks next month.

Sikandar Raza, the Zimbabwe batsman, has said that the side’s two-wicket win in the first ODI against Ireland has given belief to the players, and will assist them in overcoming tough situations in the future. Zimbabwe had been reduced to 171 for 7 chasing 220, but Raza made an unbeaten 60 to guide them home with an over remaining, a result he said showed the “mental toughness” of the young side.”Sometimes when you are out of form as a batter, sometimes what you need is a scratchy, ugly-looking innings to get yourself some runs and get your confidence going. What we needed was this win, maybe an ugly-looking win but what it does is it brings the team a lot closer and helps with the belief and the faith that we have in one another and ourselves,” Raza said.”This win will play a lot (bigger) role than what you see. You see that we have gone one-up against Ireland. But what I see is that it has given enough belief to the squad and we have got ourselves together. This will work in mysterious ways, especially in the change room. We will perform better when we find ourselves in difficult situations.”The win was only Zimbabwe’s fourth in 18 completed ODIs this year, to go with a solitary victory in seven T20Is. The selectors have dropped a few underperforming senior players, and Raza saw the Ireland win as a reflection of the potential the relatively inexperienced side has.”Because we were losing, there were a lot of fingers raised and questions asked and rightly so to be fair. As I said sometimes you need an ugly, scratchy win and that showed our mental toughness, especially the youngsters. We have got quite a young side. Apart from Elton (Chigumbura) I do not think there is anyone close to a 100 (ODIs). If you take away the other two guys – Chamu (Chibhabha) and Sean Williams – the rest of us are just maybe 5-10-20-30 (games). That is a good sign that we are mentally strong enough but we have to play our roles a bit better and if we can do that we will win more games in the future.”Raza was pleased to have been successful in steering his team to victory, something he said he had failed to do before. “Yes, it was nervous. I found myself for the first time finishing a game. That is taking confidence for the next game. I have found myself previously as well (in such situations) but I have never been able to win the game for the team. So today before I walked on to the park I said a few things to myself and I made sure that I stayed true to what I said to myself, and luckily it ended up working.”One of the reasons for my downfall could have been that I have gone aerial a lot earlier in my innings. Today I was just hitting the ball on the ground for as long as possible, and take the aerial shot once you really have to.”Raza’s 38-run eighth-wicket partnership with Wellington Masakadza was crucial in the chase and the batsman was full of praise for the debutant left-arm spinner, who was eventually run out for 10. “I told him, ‘sorry mate,’ because he called and I did not know where the ball was. He was batting beautifully. I mean the guy is on debut and has bowled well, has fielded his heart out. The last thing you need is for him to get out, and god forbid if we lose the game then a debutant is not in a good place.”He has got a bright future ahead. His ten overs went for between 30 to 40 (45) which is still good on that track and he came on to bowl at a crucal time as well. Most importantly to me his attitude stands out. He is a very humble guy, plenty of energy in the field. He adds quite a lot to the team and with the bat you have all seen he can hold his own especially under pressure, so that speaks volumes about his character.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMohammad Hafeez was a dominant figure during Pakistan’s Test series victory against England and he was to the fore once more, striking an unbeaten century as they took the opening ODI in Abu Dhabi by six wickets with 6.2 overs to spare.Much of the work had been done earlier by a strikingly disciplined and energetic display in the field by Pakistan, who limited England to 216, at least 40 runs under par, before Hafeez settled in on a sluggish, largely unresponsive surface to register his 11th one-day hundred.It ensured the victory his side craved as a send-off for Younis Khan after his abrupt announcement on the morning of the match that he would retire from ODI cricket that same evening.So Younis has his farewell victory. His final ODI innings – although in Pakistan cricket you never can tell – was a laboured affair – 9 in 18 balls before he came to grief with an ugly pull to mid-on. No matter: he got the bat waves to cheering spectators, the guard of honour from smiling team mates, and ultimately got the victory. Dropped during the World Cup, seemingly for good, he had felt entitled to a departure with all the trimmings and had somehow managed to contrive exactly that.Upon his dismissal, at 41 for 3, the game remained in the balance, Reece Topley’s heavily-inked left-arm, in his first overseas ODI, having found some inswing to claim all three wickets. They were an interesting trio, kicked off by the captain Azhar Ali and a failed pinch hitter in Bilal Asif, both of them falling lbw. It could have been worse for Younis – Topley almost got him lbw first ball only for Younis to get a bit of bat on it. After 264 ODIs he probably felt entitled to a bit of fortune.Hafeez’s methodical hundred – intelligently constructed strokeplay at the top of the order – at least gave some vague legitimacy to England’s waste of a review when he was 16 by underlining the importance of his wicket. For all that, it was among the more optimistic lbw appeals ever reviewed, Hafeez having middled it, only for a second impact some time later persuading Chris Woakes into a spot of wishful thinking.As for England’s spinners, the story of the Test series remained embedded with 19 overs shared between Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid and Joe Root for 104 runs with only the wicket of Shoaib Malik, who flicked Moeen to midwicket, to show for it. But the spinners would have needed to be a wondrous bunch to build pressure with so few to defend. Hafeez could play much as he pleased. “It would be cruel to criticise the bowlers with only 216 on the board,” Morgan said.Babar Azam, who made his debut against Zimbabwe is his home city of Lahore earlier this year, also impressed with an unbeaten 62 in only his fourth ODI. His pull for six against David Willey was the final statement that for England there would be no way back. He might have been fortunate, however, to survive Topley’s return when, at 145 for 4, the bowler might have won a fourth wicket via a feather down the leg side, only for the umpire, Johan Cloete, to indicate with a gentle tap that he imagined the ball had brushed the batsman’s thigh. A storming catch earlier – a spring to his left at straight midwicket to intercept a Moeen Ali pull – added to a lustrous day.England were purring along at 147 for 3, with Eoin Morgan and James Taylor having recovered an early collapse with a stand of 133 in 27 overs, but wickets then clattered for a second time against disciplined bowling and alert fielding. Morgan and Taylor made 136 runs between them; the rest of England’s top 7 made 18.Morgan could at least draw personal encouragement from his first appearance – the practice match against Hong Kong apart – since he was concussed by a blow on the head from the Australia quick Mitchell Starc at Old Trafford at the tail-end of the English season. Wearing additional protective flaps on his helmet, he looked in excellent order in making 76 from 96 before Malik found slight turn and he edged to the wicketkeeper.Morgan did get off the mark in fortunate fashion when he pulled languidly at a ball from Mohammad Irfan and happily accepted the award of four runs off his forearm. Surprisingly, even on such a slow surface Azhar did not bring on Wahab Riaz earlier than planned with instructions to fire in a few short ones.Taylor, too, could take satisfaction from the stand, but he was culpable in the run out of Jos Buttler, desperately hoping for a change of fortune, but out with a single to his name, forced him into a push-and-run single to midwicket, leaving the wicketkeeper with time to sweep up Azhar slick pick up and throw.With a need to remedy his miscalculation, Taylor then fell for 60 when he chipped Malik to short midwicket. Taylor would have faltered even earlier than that had Pakistan not deliberated beyond the stipulated 15 seconds before unsuccessfully requesting a review for an lbw appeal by Malik which replays showed was hitting leg stump.England’s start was rocky: three wickets down for 14 with the innings only 3.1 overs old. Growing attention is being given to Jason Roy’s crooked defensive technique, but it was also an excellent delivery from Irfan that seemed to beat him for pace and rattled his off stump. Joe Root logged England’s second duck when he fell lbw to Anwar Ali – he spent England’s review as well, in the mistaken belief that the ball was missing leg – and Alex Hales became Anwar’s second wicket when Younis held a juggling catch at slip.The confrontation between Irfan, at 7ft tall, and Taylor, around 18 inches shorter, was a photographic joy. Add the additional height of Irfan’s arm and Taylor was receiving a delivery from more than three feet above his head. In Game of Thrones terms, it might not quite have been Tyrion Lannister vs Mag the Mighty, but it was not far short, and a near beamer from Irfan just added to the challenge.When Taylor quickened towards his fifty with straight sixes against Asif and Malik in turn, England must have had hopes for 280, but those sixes were also an indication of England struggling to tick along quite as effectively as the ball aged. From that point – an expanse of 21.4 overs – they managed only one more boundary. Even that was a full toss from Yasir Shah which Woakes gratefully despatched on his way to an unbeaten 33 which merely sugared the pill.

Michael Bevan – blasts third consecutive century Photo © AllSport UK

Sussex are in a commanding position against Nottinghamshire at Hove afterMichael Bevan had hit his second hundred of the match. The home county hasleft the visitors to score 388 tomorrow with all their second-inningswickets in hand.The Australian left-hander, who is rated the best limited-overs batsman in the world, has shown a similar appetite for the championship. His third championship century in consecutive innings and at 174 was his highest score for Sussex (exceeding his 166 in the first innings).
This summer Bevan has made 1,667 runs in all competitions. He and Richard Montgomerie have scored 558 runs in this match and have enjoyed stands of 292 and 266.Bevan’s difficult chance to Paul Johnson in the covers when he was the 140was the only chance they gave. Usman Afzaal, an occasional left-arm spinner,dismissed both batsmen. Montgomerie’s sweep lobbed the ball up to thewicketkeeper, and Bevan drove the ball to Jason Gallian at extra-cover.Thereupon Chris Adams declared leaving Nottinhgamshire seven hours to play out which they did in scoring 19. Earlier in the day Nottinghamshire had folded from 240-3 to 265-8 against James Kirtley’s quick bowling. Chris Read and Andrew Harris prevented the possibility of the follow-on. Richard Stemp’s dismissal at 344 prevented the county from winning a final bonus point. Kirtley completed the innings with 6-90.

The scheduled friendly floodlit limited-overs game between the West Indiansand the New Zealand A team at Bristol was abandoned without a ball beingbowled due to heavy continuous rain.The previous day similar wet weather had caused the friendly game between the New Zealanders and Zimbabweans on the same ground to be abandoned without a decision being reached on a minimum 25 overs. The opening match of the NatWest Series limited-overs triangular tournament is due to be played between West Indies and Zimbabwe at Bristol on Thursday, by which time, it is hoped, the rain would have moved on.