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While every season is a big one, next season feels especially important for Tottenham Hotspur.

The club are finally back in the Champions League thanks to Ange Postecoglou delivering on his promise of winning something in his second year.

However, while he’ll enjoy the benefits of leading out a team in Europe’s biggest competition, new boss Thomas Frank will be under pressure to improve the club’s dire Premier League form that saw his predecessor get the sack.

Fortunately, Daniel Levy and the board are not hanging him out to dry this summer, having already spent £55m on Mohammed Kudus and working to bring Morgan Gibbs-White to N17 for his £60m release clause.

The Nottingham Forest star would be an excellent addition to the squad, but Spurs might be better off signing another attacking ace they’ve previously been linked with.

Why Spurs want Gibbs-White

While we think there might be a better option out there, it’s easy to see why Spurs want to sign Gibbs-White this summer.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

After all, not only does he have an abundance of experience in the Premier League, but he was also seriously effective for Forest last season.

For example, in 38 games across all competitions, totalling 3142 minutes, the 25-year-old ace scored seven goals and provided ten assists.

That comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 2.23 games, or one every 184.82 minutes, and under the tutelage of the attack-minded Frank, you’d expect those numbers to improve in North London next season.

Another reason the Lilywhites might be keen to land the midfielder is that he’s a homegrown star and has already won four caps for the Three Lions, which is always great for the marketability of a player and his own development.

Finally, at 25 years old, the former Wolverhampton Wanderers gem is neither past his peak nor someone who will need time to develop; instead, he’s a prime age player who can come in and make an instant impact.

Yet, for everything there is to like about Gibbs-White, there is another international we reckon Spurs should sign instead: Xavi Simons.

Why Spurs should sign Xavi Simons over Gibbs-White

While it appears the club’s attention is now on Gibbs-White, they have been linked with Simons several times this summer.

Moreover, with his reported price tag also being around £60m, switching their focus to him wouldn’t incur additional costs.

With that said, why should they opt for the Ducthman over the Forest ace?

Simons vs Gibbs-White in 24/25
Players	Simons	Gibbs-White
Appearances	33	38
Minutes	2763′	3142′
Goals	11	7
Assists	8	10
Goal Involvements per Match	0.57	0.44
Minutes per Goal Involvement	145.42′	184.82′
All Stats via Transfermarkt

Well, the first argument comes down to their output from last season, as in his 33 games for RB Leipzig, totalling 2763 minutes, the Amsterdam-born ace, who one analyst has dubbed “one of the best 10s in the world,” scored 11 goals and provided eight assists.

In other words, he maintained an average of a goal involvement every 1.73 games, or every 145.42 minutes, which is far better than what the Englishman could manage.

Moreover, the former PSV Eindhoven gem has more experience at the very highest level of the game, making 13 Champions League appearances thus far and playing a major role for the Netherlands at the last Euros.

Another key advantage the 22-year-old has is that he’s more positionally versatile than the former Wolves star and is comfortable in the ten, off both wings and even up top.

Ultimately, both players would be brilliant additions to the side, but due to his significantly better output, experience beyond his years and the fact that he can comfortably play all over the pitch, we reckon Simons would be the better signing.

With all that said, Spurs would be clever to bring in both.

Gibbs-White will love him: Spurs huge admirers of £80m Premier League star

Tottenham Hotspur’s huge transfer window has shown no signs of slowing down in recent days.

By
Ethan Lamb

Jul 14, 2025

Glasgow Rangers have not been messing about in the summer transfer window in an attempt to ensure that Russell Martin has a quality group to work with.

The Scottish Premiership giants announced their latest summer signing on Thursday morning, confirming the arrival of Mikey Moore from Tottenham Hotspur.

Speaking about his new signing, Martin told the club’s official website: “His profile as a brave, aggressive attacking player is one that we were keen to add to the squad, and he is certainly a player who, despite his age, can make an impact on the team from day one.”

The 17-year-old will be hoping for a successful first season out on loan at first-team level, but he is not the only left-sided forward who is looking to make an impact on the pitch for the Gers.

Djeidi Gassama joined on a permanent deal from Sheffield Wednesday earlier this summer and may compete with Moore for a starting position in the team this term.

Why Gassama and Moore are exciting signings for Rangers

The 21-year-old has already got supporters excited about what he could do on the pitch for the Light Blues this season with his cameos against Panathinaikos across both legs of their second round Champions League qualifier.

Gassama scored in both games, at Ibrox and in Greece, and his strike on Wednesday was particularly important because it came just seven minutes after Panathinaikos had taken the lead on the night.

The French winger did only manage eight goals and one assist in 46 appearances in all competitions in the 2024/25 campaign for Sheffield Wednesday, though, so it is still down to him to prove that he can deliver consistently in front of goal.

His two goals in two games so far, though, make him an exciting prospect moving forward, as Gers fans will be hoping that he can offer a big threat as a scorer on a regular basis.

Moore, meanwhile, has even more to prove at Ibrox because he has only scored one senior goal for Spurs, but his form at youth level shows that there is the potential for him to be an incredibly exciting winger for Martin if he can find his feet in Glasgow.

Tottenham

21

1

2

Tottenham U21s

5

2

2

Tottenham Youth League

5

0

0

Tottenham U18s

24

19

13

England U19

11

3

3

England U17

12

10

4

England U16

14

7

2

England U15

4

1

0

As you can see in the table above, the 17-year-old star has been sensational at youth level for England and Spurs, but it is now down to him to take this opportunity to explode on the senior scene with Rangers.

Whilst both Moore and Gassama are exciting signings because of what they have the potential to be, the Gers could land an even more exciting signing than both of them by bringing in Salvatore Esposito.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

Rangers have been linked with an interest in the £5m-rated Spezia star, but it remains to be seen whether or not they will make an official move for the Italy international before the summer transfer window slams shut at the start of September.

Why Rangers must sign Salvatore Esposito

The Light Blues must be pushing to do a deal for the 24-year-old star because he would be an even more exciting signing than both Gassama and Moore.

Unlike both of those young wingers, the Italian central midfielder has proven his ability to both score and assist goals on a regular basis, having delivered impressive performances in the Serie B last season.

The Spezia sensation scored seven goals, created 18 ‘big chances’, and delivered nine assists in the regular Serie B season, as well as another assist in two play-off matches.

Meanwhile, Gassama recorded nine goal contributions with Sheffield Wednesday, and Mikey Moore managed three with Spurs, which means that Esposito was directly involved in more goals in Italy than the two wingers were in England combined.

The £5m-rated star, who was described as “tenacious” and “elegant” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, is a player who has the quality and performances at senior level behind him to come in as a very exciting signing for the Gers.

Because Esposito has already proven himself at a respectable level in Italy, he would arrive at Ibrox with a weight of expectation and excitement around him, as a player who the supporters can reasonably expect to score and create goals on a fairly regular basis.

Appearances

34

Goals

7

Big chances created

18

Key passes per game

2.4

Assists

9

Duels won per game

7.3

Duel success rate

65%

Ball recoveries per game

6.3

As you can see in the table above, the Spezia central midfielder also provided quality out of possession to go along with his very impressive contributions at the top end of the pitch.

Mohamed Diomande and Nicolas Raskin both failed to win more than 6.6 duels per game in the Premiership, which suggests that Esposito could provide even more of a physical presence in the middle of the park for Martin.

This furthers the belief that the Serie B talent would be an exciting signing for the Gers because he is a well-rounded midfielder who could win fans over by winning duels, recovering possessions, scoring goals, and providing assists.

Two years ago, Esposito also showed his potential to be a threat from set-pieces with a fantastic goal against AC Milan in the Serie A, and was described as a “set-piece specialist” by Jacek Kulig.

Overall, supporters could be even more excited by the prospect of watching him play than Moore and Gassama, who still have a lot to prove, as he has put in the performances on the pitch to suggest that he would be a brilliant all-round midfield star for Martin.

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It is now down to the club to strike a deal to bring the central midfielder to Ibrox before the summer transfer window ends at the start of September.

It will be fascinating to see the future of Marcus Rashford this summer, but it does not seem like he will return to Aston Villa.

The Manchester United forward enjoyed a successful loan spell at Villa Park in the second half of last season, but a return to the club on a permanent deal seems unlikely.

In mid-May, BBC Sport reported that the winger thinks his boyhood club ‘would be prepared to sell him for £40m to anyone this summer’. Reading between the lines, you certainly get the impression that a permanent deal at Villa Park is off the table for Rashford.

If he does end up going elsewhere, the Villans will need a replacement for the electric England international.

Aston Villa eyeing up Rashford alternative

Replacing a player with the impact and star quality of Rashford will not be easy for Monchi and Co this summer, especially with potential PSR restrictions looming over them.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

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However, it seems as though manager Unai Emery has identified his ideal target.

According to a report from journalist Graeme Bailey, the West Midlands club are ‘keeping very close tabs’ on Barcelona attacker Ferran Torres.

He is a player who ‘has been on the radar of several Premier League clubs’ since leaving Manchester City, with ‘Villa seriously interested’ in adding him to their squad.

This is a move driven by manager Emery. It appears that the Villa boss would ‘absolutely love’ for his side to sign the Spain international this summer.

As for a fee, it was reported by a Spanish news outlet in May that he could cost around the £42m mark for any potential transfer to happen.

How Ferran Torres compares to Rashford

If Torres were to make the move to Villa Park this summer, he would add instant quality to their attack and bring Premier League experience, too. Of course, since leaving Man City, he has represented Barcelona, where, last season, he impressed.

Breaking into a Barca front three that contains Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski, and, of course, Lamine Yamal, is not easy. Yet, Torres still showed his quality last season, with 19 goals and seven assists in 45 appearances.

In La Liga, he played 27 times, scoring ten times and grabbing six assists. However, perhaps the most notable game of the 2024/25 season from the Spaniard came against his former side, Valencia, in the Copa del Rey. Torres scored a hat-trick in a 5-0 rout at the Estadio Mestalla.

It certainly would not be easy to step in for Rashford if the Spaniard moved to Villa. The 27-year-old only played 17 games for the club, but had an incredible impact in such a short amount of time.

The boyhood Man United star played 940 minutes, the equivalent of 10.4 full 90-minute games. He scored four goals and registered six assists in that time, leaving him with a goal-to-game ratio of 0.96.

Stepping into Rashford’s boots will certainly be a challenge for Torres. However, he already had a taste of the Premier League with Man City. In 28 English top-flight games, he scored nine goals and grabbed three assists.

Many Villa fans will surely be hoping the Spain international is essentially the second coming of Rashford, and the stats on FBref are there to back that up. The pair are statistically similar to each other over the past 365 days.

There are some noticeable stats which best showcase the similarities between the pair. For example, Torres last season averaged 3.09 shot-creating actions each game compared to Rashford’s 3.55 shot-creating actions per 90 minutes.

Torres and Rashford key stats compared

Stat (per 90)

Torres

Rashford

Goals per shot on target

0.45

0.36

Key passes

1.54

1.77

Progressive passes

2.85

2.15

Shot-creating actions

3.09

3.55

Goal-creating actions

0.57

0.25

Take-ons completed

0.89

1.14

Stats from FBref

Stats like that show just how involved in the attack Torres is, which can certainly be said for Rashford, too. In that sense, and the fact that he maintains a similar creative output to the Englishman, suggests he would be a fantastic replacement. He is, as football scout Antonio Mango said, a “special” player.

For around £42m, Torres could be a bargain for the Villa Park side. He is, in many ways, the second coming of Rashford, and should seamlessly be able to step into his shoes. Emery wants to sign him, and the price is fair. This seems like a brilliant deal for Villa.

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Sheffield United are now keen on signing an “excellent” forward who is soon to be a free agent, according to Sky Sports.

Blades weigh up Chris Wilder’s future

Before a ball was kicked in the 2024/25 campaign, the Blades were expected to be one of the three sides to gain promotion to the Premier League, despite the fact they suffered a points deduction. The Yorkshire side lived up to those expectations to a degree, but the brutal reality is the season will be looked at as a failure.

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The last-minute defeat to Sunderland in the play-off final not only means the Blades remain in the Championship, but questions are now being asked of Chris Wilder. Football Insider reported at the end of last week that United are going to decide in the next week whether to sack Wilder or not.

Club chiefs are said to be assessing his position as manager, and the club’s new owners, American-based consortium COH Sports, are considering letting Wilder leave, despite his current deal running until the summer of 2028.

Sheffield United keen on Emil Riis

Despite Wilder’s future at Bramall Lane being up in the air, the club are still actively looking at ways of improving the team for next season. According to Sky Sports’ Anthony Joseph, Sheffield United are interested in signing Preston North End striker Emil Riis Jakobsen on a free transfer.

The 26-year-old is coming to the end of his contract at Deepdale, and it looks as though he could be on the move this summer. The Blades are not the only team chasing the forward, as Frank Lampard’s Coventry City are also keen on the Dane. Joseph reports that Riis Jakobsen wants to join a team with ambitions to gain promotion to the Premier League, which both of these clubs will be looking to do.

Riis Jakobsen, who was once dubbed “excellent” by former Preston boss Ryan Lowe, has been at Deepdale since October 2020. During that time, the forward has been a regular contributor in front of goal, netting 12 goals in 45 Championship games last season.

Apps

172

Goals

41

Assists

11

That tally has only been beaten once since moving to England, and that was in the 2021/22 season, when he scored 16 goals. The Blades do already have Kieffer Moore, Rhian Brewster, Tyrese Campbell, and Tom Cannon up top, so there will be plenty of competition for a starting spot.

And the uncertainty over Wilder’s future could disrupt their pursuit of the forward, as Riis Jakobsen is going to want some guarantees about playing time before he makes his decision on where to play next.

Manchester United are now showing the “greatest interest” in signing a “true football artist”, but they will have to fork out his €45m (£38m) release clause to secure his signature, according to a journalist.

Man Utd set to bolster attacking options

Much of the goalscoring burden has fallen on Bruno Fernandes this season, while the Portugal international also leads the way for Man United on the assist charts, with Amad the only other forward to regularly chip in with attacking contributions.

As such, it is little wonder that Ruben Amorim wants to bolster his attacking options this summer, and a new striker is of particular interest, with progress now being made in the pursuit of Napoli’s Victor Osimhen, having reached an agreement on personal terms.

Not only is Amorim keen on a new striker, but a new playmaker could also be brought in to ease the burden on Fernandes, and the Red Devils have reportedly submitted a monster £115.7m bid for RB Leipzig attacking midfielder Xavi Simons.

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Simons has caught the eye with his impressive performances in the Bundesliga, picking up nine goals and five assists this season, but there have also been suggestions that United could take a chance on more of an unknown quantity.

In a recent update on X, journalist Cesar Luis Merlo has now revealed Man United are showing the “greatest interest” in signing River Plate attacking midfielder Franco Mastantuono, with a view to getting a deal done this summer.

Amorim’s side are “constantly following” Mastantuono, having already watched him in action, but they know the only way to prise him away from River Plate will be to stump up the €45m (£38m) release clause included in his contract.

"True football artist" Mastantuono likened to Palmer

The River Plate youngster is only 17, but he already has a great deal of first-team experience, making 54 appearances for the Argentine side, during which time he has picked up six goals and five assists.

In light of his attacking capabilities, the Argentine has even been likened to Chelsea star Cole Palmer by scout Ben Mattinson.

Football talent scout Jacek Kulig has also clearly been impressed by the starlet, describing him as a “true football artist” and “one of the most enjoyable youngsters to watch in world football” back in November.

It would, of course, be a risk to shell out £38m on Mastantuono, given that he is unproven outside Argentina, but there are clear signs he could adapt to life in the Premier League and make a name for himself at Manchester United.

As the Premier League season enters the final stage, Manchester City are already starting to prepare for the summer transfer window and are now willing to make a £60 million offer to sign a “magician” for Pep Guardiola, according to a recent report.

Man City eye new midfielder to possibly replace Bernardo Silva

Given how busy the Blues were during the January transfer window, it is expected to be even busier at the Etihad this summer, as the club looks to potentially move players on and bring in new, young, and hungrier replacements.

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Over the weekend it was reported that Portuguese giants Benfica are interested in a move to sign Bernardo Silva from City. It is claimed that Silva is willing to take a pay cut on his current wage to secure a move to his homeland and to return to his boyhood club. His exit could be granted by Guardiola and the City chiefs, as his contract expires at the end of next season, and the Blues seemingly have their eyes on both a future successor and an immediate replacement.

According to The Star, City have seen an offer rejected for Sheffield Wednesday’s Caelan-Kole Cadamarteri. The attacker is only 15 years old, but the Blues see him as a player who has a bright future in the game, and the Premier League champions are willing to spend a seven-figure deal on him to secure a transfer. He may not be ready-made for the Premier League, but he could be seen as a long-term replacement for Silva.

Man City prepared to offer £60m to sign “magician”

If Silva does leave the Etihad, the Blues have their eyes on finding a more ready-made replacement as well. According to a report from Spain, Man City have made Tottenham Hotspur’s James Maddison one of their transfer targets ahead of this summer.

The report states that the Blues are looking ahead to the future, and Maddison’s excellent campaign for Spurs hasn’t gone unnoticed by Guardiola. So much so, that City are now willing to offer £60 million to secure the Englishman’s signature. Maddison isn’t seen as a player who can just become a squad player; in fact, they see him as the perfect replacement for Kevin De Bruyne, who is leaving City at the end of the campaign.

Maddison, who has been dubbed a “magician” by Statman Dave in the past, is seen as the perfect player for Guardiola’s system, and the City boss hasn’t hidden his admiration for the player, calling him “quality” this season.

James Maddison’s Premier League stats

Apps

221

Goals

56

Assists

48

Maddison has netted nine goals and recorded six assists in 30 league games this season, and that has been achieved in an underperforming Tottenham side. The 28-year-old is a key player for Spurs and Ange Postecoglou and is under contract until 2028, but they will consider a possible sale should they receive an offer of £60 million.

Voll and King, stars of the WBBL, will be on show in the ODIs against India. For their part, the visitors have a top order to figure out

Srinidhi Ramanujam and Tristan Lavalette04-Dec-2024India are coming off a 2-1 win against New Zealand at home but they know they are yet to win an ODI series against Australia in Australia. These teams have met 16 times in women’s ODIs in Australia, and India have lost 12 of those games. Come Thursday, India will be keen to begin to correct that record, against a Tahlia McGrath-led Australian side, in the first of three ODIs, in Brisbane. Both teams will need to address a couple of cracks, with the 2025 ODI World Cup in India less than a year away. Here are the talking points ahead of the series.

Australia turn attention to ODIs after T20 World Cup disappointment

Indicative of the increasingly crowded women’s calendar, the Australian players didn’t have much time to take stock over their shock semi-final exit at the recent T20 World Cup in the UAE, with the WBBL season starting almost immediately after.But as they’ve come together in Brisbane ahead of the India ODI series, the squad and team hierarchy debriefed over what went wrong in the UAE. Hoping to learn lessons from a rare failure, Australia are now setting their sights on 50-over cricket as they start preparations for a title defence at next year’s World Cup.This series and the subsequent tour of New Zealand will round out Australia’s ICC Women’s Championship matches.Having not played ODI cricket since a tour of Bangladesh in March, Australia will be led by McGrath who takes the captaincy reins from the injured Alyssa Healy as she did at the end of the T20 World Cup. It will be McGrath’s first full series as captain with Ash Gardner her deputy.Veteran Ellyse Perry had the role in the latter stages of the T20 World Cup, but Australia’s hierarchy is keen to further the leadership of Gardner, who has assumed the vice-captaincy a couple of times before.”I’m more of a quieter leader… lead from the front, small conversations, and I think my biggest strength in leadership is my calmness,” McGrath told reporters on Wednesday. “Midge [Healy] and I balance each other really well. I’m hoping to do the same with Ash because she has strengths of her own that complement mine.”Priya Punia is likely to open alongside Smriti Mandhana•PTI

A rejigged Indian top order without Shafali

Shafali Verma’s poor ODI returns of late means she has been dropped from the squad but with Yastika Bhatia – who batted at No. 3 against New Zealand – also getting injured, Harmanpreet Kaur and Co will need two players who can slot in at the top of the order.The captain backed Shafali to find form again, and said on the eve of the series that “she is a very important player for us and has done exceptionally well for the country. We are looking forward to seeing her get back into her zone and perform well for the team.”In her absence, Priya Punia might open with Smriti Mandhana. Punia has played only three ODIs since 2023 and has been in and out of the team. She made a comeback against South Africa in June this year (and made 28 from No. 3) on the back of impressive performances in domestic cricket but was dropped for the New Zealand series. However, she was part of the A tour of Australia in August, when she opened and made 76, 29 and 11 in the T20s and 6 and 1 in one-dayers.There’s no definite answer to who is India’s No. 3 in ODIs. There’s a possibility that India might ask one of Harleen Deol – whose last ODI was against Australia at home in December 2023 – or the uncapped Uma Chetry to slot in at one-drop. The second scenario will be to promote Richa Ghosh or Jemimah Rodrigues. Currently, both of them bat in the middle order but they have the experience of batting at No. 3; Ghosh was a brief experiment at one-drop against Australia last December where she even made a career-best 96. But it’s been three years since Rodrigues, who began her ODI career as an opener in 2018, was seen in the top three.By moving one of Ghosh or Rodrigues up, India would be able to accommodate Tejal Hasabnis, who made her India debut against New Zealand, in the middle order. Hasabnis played a steady innings of 42 in her debut game at No. 6 when India were in a spot of bother. She also toured Australia with the A squad and hit three fifties in as many one-dayers in Mackay.Georgia Voll finished fifth in the WBBL run charts•Getty Images

Voll gets her chance

While Australia’s experienced squad brims with familiar names, 21-year-old Georgia Voll adds fresh blood having replaced Healy in the squad. She gets her chance in national colours after several eye-catching performances to start the domestic season.The powerful right-hander smashed 98 off 94 balls for Queensland against Western Australia in the WNCL before igniting the early stages of the WBBL with two scores in the 90s.It vindicated her move from Brisbane Heat to Sydney Thunder, with Voll finishing fifth overall in the runs charts with 330 at a strike rate of 144.73. Her breakout season was rewarded with selection in the WBBL Team of the Tournament.Voll looks set to open the batting alongside Phoebe Litchfield in a partnership that could foreshadow what lies ahead for Australia. “It’s been a while since we’ve had a fresh face in the side,” McGrath said of Voll. “There’s a lot of excitement. She’s been knocking down the door for a while. She’s more than ready to compete at this level.”

India explore pace options</h2India's premier pace allrounder Pooja Vastrakar, who was rested against New Zealand at home, is absent with Renuka Singh continuing to lead the attack. This series could give India an indication about their fast-bowling composition, building up to the home World Cup later this year. India have Arundhati Reddy and Saima Thakor – both of them made their ODI debuts this year, and both of them can be handy with the bat and will be keen to utilise the pace-friendly conditions in Brisbane and Perth to maximise their potential.India also have called up the young fast bowler Titas Sadhu, who is uncapped in ODIs. After featuring in the T20Is against Bangladesh in May, Sadhu spent a few months doing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy – why, is unclear – and returned to competitive cricket at the senior women's T20 trophy in October, representing Bengal who finished runners-up.With regards to spin, Deepti Sharma and Radha Yadav are the likely starters.Alana King did not get a single game at the T20 World Cup•BCCI

In-form King hoping to shrug off finger injury

After being benched throughout the T20 World Cup, legspinner Alana King bounced back with a standout WBBL season. She finished with the most wickets in the round-robin phase, taking 20 at an average of 13.30.But King injured the pinkie finger on her right bowling hand during Perth Scorchers’ final game of the season. She did take part in Australia’s training session on Tuesday in an encouraging development for King, who last played for Australia during the ODI series in Bangladesh earlier this year.King could be particularly relied upon when the series concludes on December 11 at the WACA. Relishing the surface’s renowned bounce, King has seemingly mastered the conditions and claimed 11 wickets at an average of just 8.37 in four WBBL matches there this season.”I’m not a tall person by any means, so having that extra bit of bounce has helped me get different modes of dismissals [at the WACA],” King told ESPNcricinfo earlier this month.

Chetry as back-up keeper to Ghosh

Ghosh has returned to the side after missing the home ODIs against New Zealand because she had to sit her board exams. Bhatia, who kept wicket against New Zealand, has been sidelined for this series due to a wrist injury, so Chetry will be the back-up wicketkeeper to Ghosh.Chetry has played four T20Is, all this year. In November, she was the second-highest run-getter in the domestic T20 Challenger Trophy with 231 runs at a strike rate of 154. She also scored 122 off 71, the only hundred in the competition. Chetry also has the experience of touring Australia, with India A side in August, though she didn’t leave a mark with the bat. In three white-ball games across formats, she accumulated 34, and made 2 and 47 in the four-day game.It should be noted that Chetry has been travelling with India’s white-ball squads on and off since July 2023, when she first earned her maiden call-up to the tour of Bangladesh.

Rauf, who plays for Melbourne Stars in the BBL, has more experience at the MCG than any other bowler on either side

Alex Malcolm22-Oct-20222:06

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The MCG can be an uncomfortable cauldron for most visiting cricketers, but it will feel like home for Haris Rauf.When Pakistan and India face off in Sunday’s blockbuster, no bowler on either side will have more T20 experience at the venue than Rauf.His rise from a Lahore Qalandars project player, to playing club cricket in Sydney and Hobart, to starring in the BBL for Melbourne Stars and then bursting into international scene has been quite extraordinary.Related

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Haris Rauf on India-Pakistan at the T20 World Cup: 'I'm very happy because it is at the MCG'

Haris Rauf sets sights on World T20 following meteoric rise

It was his first season with Stars in 2019-20 that set him on the path to becoming one of the best death bowlers in T20 cricket. Since the start of 2020, no bowler has taken more wickets in the death overs in T20Is than Rauf’s 37. One man who was influential in getting him to Stars was their former List Manager Trent Woodhill, who believes Rauf’s MCG experience could hold the key to the outcome of the Pakistan-India match.”I think Haris’ experience at the MCG makes Pakistan favourites,” Woodhill told ESPNcricinfo. “I think because [Jasprit] Bumrah is out, that’s a massive loss for India. And they are similar types of bowlers at the MCG where that slower ball grips and yorkers are hard to get under. I know it’s early in the season so things might be a little bit different. But I think the four overs from Haris probably determines the outcome of the game.”It’s hard to argue with the numbers. In seven T20s at the MCG, he has 11 wickets at a strike rate of 13.6 and an economy rate of 6.92. He took a hat-trick in his first game there for Stars, against Sydney Thunder. Stars couldn’t believe their luck when he landed in their lap following a spate of injuries and some quick thinking from then-general manager Nick Cummins, coach David Hussey and Woodhill. But what Stars didn’t expect was how well he would be suited to the MCG pitch itself.