Leeds United have been linked with making an out of work manager their next boss and a new update has dropped regarding the situation, amid doubts over Daniel Farke’s future.

The Whites sit 16th in the Premier League table currently, with four defeats in their last five matches in the competition seeing the pressure increase on Farke and Marco Rose linked with replacing him.

That said, Sky Sports‘ Zinny Boswell has recently played down rumours of Farke being relieved of his duties any time soon, although there is a tough run of fixtures on the horizon.

“Leeds have no plans to change their head coach as things stand amid growing discontent among supporters and, after taking 11 points from 11 Premier League games, the club and Farke feel the team are currently on course to achieve their goal of survival.

“Sitting one point above the relegation zone, Leeds have the hardest schedule in the Premier League over the next five matches, according to Opta, with Aston Villa, Chelsea and Liverpool visiting Elland Road as well as trips to Manchester City and Brentford. The fact Farke’s scheduled in for broadcast interviews next week is as strong an indication as any that he will be in the hot seat for at least some of those games and, although it is a daunting run, there is a belief internally that the Elland Road factor is a reason for optimism.”

"Available" Rodgers linked with replacing Farke at Leeds

Now, speaking to Leeds United News, journalist Graeme Bailey has discussed Brendan Rodgers being Leeds’ next boss, saying he could be a strong option something which “piles the pressure” on Farke.

There is plenty to admire about Rodgers as a manager, should he become a genuine option for Leeds, with the 52-year-old winning the FA Cup with Leicester City in 2021 and guiding Celtic to four Scottish Premiership titles, among other trophies.

He is an attack-minded manager famed for playing good football in a 4-3-3 formation, and he has huge experience in the Premier League, even coming close to winning the title with Liverpool back in 2013/14, entertaining the masses and getting the best out of the likes of Luis Suarez and Steven Gerrard.

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That said, it doesn’t appear as though 49ers Enterprises are going to rush into a decision with Farke for the time being, but the situation could change if they struggle in these tough upcoming games.

Leeds now eyeing 4-4-2 "quick and dynamic" manager to replace Daniel Farke

Nottingham Forest have now joined the race to sign Anderlecht midfielder Nathan De Cat, and the Belgian club’s asking price has been revealed.

Forest have set out to bolster their options in the middle of the park, amid growing doubts over the future of Elliot Anderson, as it was revealed the central midfielder would be “very keen” on a move to Old Trafford, with Manchester United now readying a £60m bid.

Chelsea have also started laying the groundwork to sign the England international, with the Tricky Trees’ current Premier League position potentially putting them in a vulnerable position when it comes to keeping hold of their best players.

Sean Dyche’s side remain in 19th place, despite an uptick in results since the arrival of the former Everton boss, meaning it would not be a surprise if Anderson decides to leave, and it would be a very difficult task to replace the 23-year-old.

However, Forest have now joined the race for another potential future star, who is being targeted by a number of clubs from across Europe.

Nottingham Forest join continental bidding war for Nathan De Cat

According to a report from TEAMtalk, Nottingham Forest have now joined a continental bidding war for Anderlecht midfielder De Cat, alongside Bayern Munich and a whole host of rival Premier League clubs.

Having made a very impressive start to the season, the 17-year-old is also of interest to Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa, meaning the Belgian club believe they are in a position to demand an initial £18m fee, with add-ons seeing the total package rise to around £31m.

There is a suggestion the Tricky Trees believe the youngster could make an immediate impact, despite his age, with the report stating they are ‘seeking a spark to ignite their survival bid.’

Having already emerged as a regular starter for Anderlecht, making 19 appearances in all competitions this season, the teenager may not be too far off Premier League level, and there are signs he could go on to be a top player.

Scout Ben Mattinson was left particularly impressed by the young midfielder last season, providing an overview of his key strengths on X.

That said, an initial £18m fee would be a fair amount to spend on a youngster yet to prove himself in a major league, and it would be a real gamble for Forest to sign De Cat as a potential difference-maker in the relegation battle, so Dyche should probably look at proven Premier League players instead.

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Marinakis is set to have the final say as The Tricky Trees plot another exciting signing.

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The India A coach says Abhimanyu “stays very motivated to challenge himself,” as he has been on the fringes of Test cricket for years now

Daya Sagar16-Sep-2025

Abhimanyu Easwaran first turned out for India A in July 2018. Over the years, he has played 30 first-class matches for India A – KS Bharat is second with 21 – but the Test cap has not come his way yet, despite being in five Test squads, including the one in England earlier this year. He is back with India A, for the two four-day games against Australia A, and back to the grind, which can’t be getting easier at 30. But Hrishikesh Kanitkar, the India A coach, expects Abhimanyu to “stay very motivated to challenge himself,” as always.”Abhimanyu is an experienced player. He has captained Bengal and played a lot of cricket at the higher level. So there isn’t much need to say a lot to him because he knows how cricket is played,” Kanitkar said at a press conference ahead of the first four-day match in Lucknow.”It was not a big challenge to talk to him because he is already prepared. He knows what to do if opportunities don’t come. One good thing is that he stays very motivated to challenge himself, push himself, perform well. And if he gets a chance at the higher level, do well there too. He is mentally very strong, prepared, and is also playing well.Related

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“He is batting well. He is in good form and in good touch. He is a very, very good player who has done it [for India A] many times. So I think he is ready for the challenge now. He is in a good place right now in terms of batting and the way managing his cricket.”Lucknow is a city that will evoke fond memories for Abhimanyu. He has played three first-class matches there, and has scored a century each time to average 117.75, with a total of 471 runs in five innings.Last year, while playing in Lucknow for Rest of India in the Irani Cup match against Mumbai, Abhimanyu scored 191 while opening the batting. Ten days later, he played a Ranji Trophy match at the same ground for Bengal against Uttar Pradesh and scored an unbeaten 127. The call-up to the Border-Gavaskar Trophy squad followed.No one in India has possibly been on the fringes of Test cricket for this long without making the cut. But now, with India A again, Abhimanyu will walk out to open and will be expected to play the same sort of calm, responsible, long innings he has made a name for, and hope the Tests at home against West Indies next month are the ones he had been waiting for.

“The final is the biggest stage, that’s the game that matters,” Chinelle Henry says ahead of the WCPL final, where her team, Barbados Royals, will be looking for their third title

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Sep-2025The Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) is in its fourth season, with the final lined up on Wednesday morning in Providence, and we will have the familiar sight of Barbados Royals in the middle, gunning for their third successive title. It’s a competition with just three teams, but Royals have been the dominant power, making all four finals, so “there was a lot riding on it,” when the WCPL began and Royals had to cope with the loss of regular captain Hayley Matthews. A shoulder injury left her on the sidelines and Chinelle Henry in the hot seat.”When she [Matthews] called me and asked me to be captain [because] she wasn’t going to be available, it was quite like, ‘yeah, just give me a moment to think about that’,” Henry said before taking on Guyana Amazon Warriors, the only team not to have won the title. Trinbago Knight Riders were the inaugural champions in 2022.”But I guess when [Matthews] asked, she was like, ‘you probably could be that person, because you have been around the team all the seasons before, as a senior player in the squad’, [despite] all the overseas players that we’ve had and even the captain in her own right in Chamari Athapaththu, who’s been brilliant helping me in the field in terms of decision-making and stuff like that.”Hayley is a big character, both on and off the field, and she has done a lot for us as a franchise. I think the girls have really stepped up. We’re in our fourth final, so that’s really something to talk about.”So far, the way we have been in the group games, there’s still a few areas to tighten up, but I think we are ready to compete in that final.”Royals have made the final winning all their four games this year, including the two against their opponents in the final, giving them a clear upper hand in the title fight.”Over the years, we have had a majority of the same girls playing on the team, so when it comes to culture, we already know what that’s like in terms of the players that we already have and the overseas players that we try to get into the squad,” Henry said. “Once they come in and get a feel of what the girls are about, everybody just fits right in and that’s what’s been the core thing for us this season.”Yes, Hayley’s not here, but how we play, how we come together as a group… she was here a few days ago, she had a few words for us, she will talk to me to say what she thinks, give a bit of advice, but it’s never anything to question my ability to lead the team. And that’s where she is really that person that trusts and believes in players and believes that players can step up when they need to. And, having done that, leading the Royals this season, it was just stepping into that spotlight and still playing my game.”The big star for Royals has been Athapaththu, who is 15 runs clear at the top of the run-scorers’ list with 169 runs in four innings, to go with seven wickets (second only to Amazon Warriors’ Laura Harris who has eight). Henry and Qiana Joseph have done their bit with the bat, but it has, at times, been a one-woman show.Chinelle Henry has played her part with the bat in Royals’ winning streak•CPL T20/Getty Images

“We have a lot of big characters in this group, and she is very passionate, and she loves what she does,” Henry said of Athapaththu. “To be the opener for this team and constantly coming up with runs for us and in the middle, when we are bowling, you can call on her and be like, we need to break a partnership or something, which happens, you know.”She is that person, you know, whenever you call on her, she puts up her hand and is ready to perform and is ready to do her all for the team. With somebody like her, a lot of us, a lot of the younger ones that we have, we really look to her in terms of advice, how she plays, how she thinks when she goes out, and she keeps it simple.”Going by the form Royals have shown in the earlier games this season, they are runaway favourites for the final.”The final is the biggest stage, that’s the game that matters. If we go into that game with a calm and clear mind, things that we have to do as a team and, I have said in a previous interview, we still haven’t got all the areas that we want to tick, all three boxes, the final will be the game to do that,” Henry said. “We know that and we have that in the back of our minds, and we go into Wednesday’s game with everything that we have and the girls are ready to fight. We’ve been in the finals and we know what it feels like to win finals, and we want to make it another one for us, so we go into the final with no complacency, we’re just going out there to fight and bring that trophy back home.”

No play possible on third day with contest evenly poised

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay10-Sep-2025Day three of Sussex’s Championship game against Hampshire at Hove was abandoned without a ball bowled – the first day’s play to be lost this season.Morning showers delayed the start to day three at the 1st Central County Ground and when more persistent rain arrived at lunchtime umpires Nigel Llong and Rob White called play off at 2.15pm with puddles forming on a saturated outfield.Both teams will be hoping for an improvement in conditions tomorrow with Sussex needing 241 runs and Hampshire nine wickets to claim a victory that would ease any fears both counties have of being dragged into a relegation battle.

The New York Yankees have had a poor week, dropping their last four games. Getting back one of baseball's best players will help.

The Yankees are formally activating right fielder and designated hitter Aaron Judge from the 10-day injured list, they announced Tuesday afternoon. Judge has not played since July 25, when he went 0-for-3 in a 12–5 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies.

"It’s Aaron Judge—we know what he means to our lineup, to the guys in the room,” New York manager Aaron Boone said via Dave Sessions of MLB.com. “So to get him back, we’re certainly excited about that. And then hopefully, shortly thereafter, he’s back out in the field, too.”

Judge's return comes amid a four-game losing streak that has left a bitter taste in Yankees' fans mouths. The team was swept by the Miami Marlins and dropped its series opener against the Texas Rangers on Monday.

In 103 games this season, Judge is slashing .342/.449/.711—all three of which lead Major League Baseball—with 37 home runs and 85 RBIs.

When the Giants shocked Major League Baseball by acquiring Rafael Devers from the Red Sox on June 15, many believed the team had found its missing piece. That dream pairing has turned into a nightmare.

Already possessing an excellent pitching staff, conventional wisdom suggested the Giants needed to add some thump to their lineup, preferably from the left side of the plate. They landed one of the game’s best players who fit that description, yet somehow it hasn't worked.

The 28-year-old Devers is a three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger who helped the Red Sox win a World Series in 2018. His relationship with the franchise soured considerably over the offseason, as the team’s signing of fellow third baseman Alex Bregman rubbed its incumbent star the wrong way. That eventually led Boston to trade its best bat to the Giants for a considerably light return.

On the date of the trade, San Francisco trailed the Dodgers by just two games in the National League West. The deal looked like a game-changer. Devers appeared to be the power bat San Francisco has lacked for years—no Giants slugger has topped 30 home runs since Barry Bonds in 2004. Plugging Devers into the middle of the lineup was supposed to wake the offense up. Instead, the team went cold, collapsed and sold off key pieces at the trade deadline.

San Francisco's pitching staff has largely held up its end of the bargain. Since June 15, Giants pitchers rank fifth in baseball in FIP (3.88) and eighth in xFIP (3.96), though they are only 16th in fWAR (3.5). A decent offense combined with that staff should have produced a winning formula. Yet the bats have disappeared, as have the team’s playoff chances.

We’re going inside the numbers to see just how this happened.

0.0 — Devers’s fWAR since his first appearance with the Giants on June 17.

5 — Home runs for Devers in 43 games since joining the Giants. He had 15 in 73 games for the Red Sox.

107 — Devers’s wRC+ since joining the Giants, 18th among designated hitters.

.318 — Devers’s wOBA with the Giants, significantly lower than his career wOBA of .359.

.715 — Devers’s OPS since joining the Giants, which would be the worst of his career, and nearly 200 points lower than the .905 mark he had before the trade. It’s also 156 points lower than his mark from 2024.

3 — Regulars with a wRC+ above 100 for the Giants since Devers joined the lineup on June 17. Willy Adames (155), Devers (107) and Casey Schmitt (106) are the only hitters with more than 50 plate appearances to top that mark. Jung Hoo Lee just missed at 99.

4.2 — fWAR for Giants hitters since Devers joined the lineup, 22nd in baseball in that time.

9.5 — Percent playoff odds for the Giants currently, per FanGraphs, down from 65% on June 16, the day after the Devers trade.

17 — Wins for the Giants in 43 games since the Devers trade. That 17–26 record works out to a .395 winning percentage. They were at .569 before the deal.

39 — Team home runs since adding Devers, tied for 26th in baseball.

96 — wRC+ for the Giants as a team before Devers joined the team, 18th in baseball.

97 — wRC+ for the Giants since Devers joined, 21st in MLB.

172 — Runs scored by the Giants since adding Devers, dead last in baseball.

.235 — Giants’ batting average since Devers joined, 27th in MLB.

.304 — Giants team wOBA with Devers, 24th in baseball.

.376 — Giants team slugging percentage with Devers, 27th in baseball.

250 Million — The approximate amount of money left on Devers’s contract after this season. There are eight years left on the 10-year, $313.5 million contract he signed with the Boston Red Sox in January of 2023. Boston did retain some of the salary this season. The deal also carries $75 million in deferred money.

It’s not all doom and gloom for the Giants. Devers has a long track record of success and will improve at some point. The bad news is that he’s gone from an extreme hitters’ park in Boston to an extreme pitchers’ park in San Francisco. Fenway Park has a park factor of 105, the second-highest in baseball, while Oracle Park is at 96, tied for the second-lowest. That will undoubtedly hurt his numbers.

Barring a miracle turnaround, the Giants appears done this year. The franchise will need to regroup and build around Devers moving forward. Somehow, Buster Posey and Co. need to find a way to give their offense a pulse. They thought their big, shocking trade would do it.

Back to the drawing board.

Despite poor ODI record against opening opponents, success in T20 World Cups augurs well

Firdose Moonda01-Oct-2025

Two wins from South Africa’s last eight ODIs against England does not make for pretty reading but allrounder Chloe Tryon isn’t bothered by that record.Ahead of her team’s Women’s World Cup opener in Guwahati on Friday, Tryon said those results don’t reflect the reality of a South African side that has reached two T20 World Cup finals since they last met England in the 50-over version, including a memorable semi-final victory at Newlands in 2023.”The team has changed a lot over the last couple of years,” Tryon told the media on Wednesday. “We’ve got some young players coming in and we’ve got a lot of experienced players, and everyone’s just taken up their role really beautifully. And the way that we’ve worked behind the scenes has been really good, so I’m not looking at too much of the stats.”South Africa’s World Cup squad is missing three of the players that lost 2-1 to England in their home ODI series last year. But they have five changes in personnel from the squad that beat England in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup before losing to them in the semi-final.Since then, South Africa have a new captain, a new wicket-keeper, a new pace spearhead, a new coach and most importantly, a new frame of reference, thanks to their progress in the shorter format. They’ve also got far more experience of their opposition than was the case three years ago. Tryon is one of three South Africans in this squad – Laura Wolvaardt and Marizanne Kapp are the others – who are fresh off the Women’s Hundred.Though Tryon herself didn’t have a good tournament, making just 31 runs in nine matches, she benefitted from first-hand experience of her English opponents which she hopes she can use to South Africa’s advantage.”It’s a really good tournament to be part of and I obviously got to play with a couple of the England girls, which was pretty exciting,” she said. “Just watching them, how they go about their skill and how they go about their business is really good, so hopefully I can give a lot of insight to the team.”Tryon and Wolvaardt’s team-mates at Southern Brave included Lauren Bell and Danni Wyatt-Hodge, two of the “matchwinners” of which Tryon is wary, in an England side laden with superstars.”As a unit they’re just really that strong,” she said. “They’re led by one of the best all-rounders in the world (Nat Sciver-Brunt), and everyone just feeds off her. Every single one of them are matchwinners. We have to make sure that we show up with a lot of presence and we give 200%. We’ve shown that we can beat them in the past and we have, so we need to be really positive going into the first game.”Related

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South Africa have turned their 50-over fortunes around since losing eight out of 10 ODIs between June 2024 and May 2025, and have won four of their last six games. Admittedly, these came against West Indies (who are not at this tournament) and Pakistan (who had to qualify) so they need to be understood in context, but they also hinted at a succcessful adjustment to a new style under coach Mandla Mashimbyi.Mashimbyi has been in charge for nine months now, in which time the team has bought into his aggressive style of cricket. They have bulked up their middle order with Anneke Bosch, Annerie Dercksen, Sune Luus, Tryon, Nadine de Klerk and the option of Karabo Meso from No.3 to 7 or 8. “We bat really deep which is really important in a 50-over tournament like this,” Tryon said. “As a batting unit, we’ve come a lot of strides over the last couple of months, you can see that there’s a big difference in our batting and our approach in our batting department.”On flat pitches, this is expected to be a World Cup of high scores. However, South Africa’s early observations from the India-Sri Lanka match were that “it takes a little bit of turn,” as Tryon put it.Her allround abilities could be crucial to South Africa’s fortunes, but so too her experience. Tryon and Luus are both playing at their fourth World Cup, while Kapp is entering her fifth. Each has the knowledge that this could be their last, and they want to make a statement.”As a senior group we just want to lead the way for the team,” Tryon said. “We’ve got some girls that haven’t played a 50-over World Cup before, so for us, it’s making sure that we’re taking a lot of the responsibility in the middle and creating really good environments within the squad. It’s been really good so far. The way that everyone has gelled together has been so good. We’re really excited for the first game and we want to lead the way as a senior group by just making sure that we keep everyone as a tight unit.”

Newcastle United fans will be growing extremely restless with how poor their beloved side’s away form continues to be.

The inconsistent Magpies must wish they could play in front of their passionate St James’ Park masses every week, with another away day loss in the Champions League against Marseille meaning the Toon have lost their last four matches on the road.

In stark contrast, Eddie Howe’s men have won their last six matches in a row back on home soil.

Of course, home advantage is a common phrase uttered in football – hence the labelling of certain home grounds as fortresses – but this Jekyll and Hyde form will seriously be worrying Howe, with TNT Sports pundit Joe Cole saying “there’s too much of a gap” between the strugglers at their very best and their very worst, after the defeat in France.

Anthony Gordon is seriously letting his side down wherever they’re lining up at the moment, though, with a regret now possibly in the air that PIF didn’t cash in on the up-and-down performer when they could’ve.

Latest on Gordon's future at Newcastle

Indeed, during the summer of 2024, Liverpool were reportedly keen to tempt the England international to Anfield, with last summer also seeing them come back with more interest, as he was touted to have a bumper £100m price-tag above his head.

Gordon warranted all this fervent interest, too, with 37 goals and assists coming his way across two campaigns for Howe’s men.

His confidence was so sky-high that the Liverpool-born forward even labelled himself a “nightmare” for defenders to contain, amid interest also coming from top-flight rivals Arsenal.

Now, however, he has thudded back to reality, with zero goals or assists coming his way from seven Premier League games so far this season, with just 40% of his dribbles accurately completed, as per Sofascore, as he continues to look a worrying shadow of his former self.

Consequently, Liverpool have moved on to another batch of high-profile targets in attack in the form of Michael Olise and Antoine Semenyo, with writer Thomas Hammond stating that a forthcoming sale of Gordon would be “favourable”, just to get him off the books, concerning his ongoing no-shows.

While he has contributed massively to his own downfall, his Newcastle career could be in even more tatters by the emergence of this promising star on Tyneside, who PIF signed on a free transfer earlier this year.

The "explosive" star who can end Gordon's career

Howe could soon have to be bold with what he does in the St James’ Park hot seat, with the current state of affairs unfolding, leading him down the unwanted path of a dismissal.

For the tie at the Orange Velodrome, Howe did bravely decide to gift 16-year-old Sam Alabi a chance from the substitutes bench, with Antonio Cordero another promising star that might be in line for some first team chances soon, partcularly if Gordon continues to frustrate.

For the time being, the former Malaga winger is out on loan in Belgium with KVC Westerlo, but when he returns, he will have even more senior action under his belt, as he attempts to unsettle Gordon, with his standout time in the senior squad at Malaga, leading to one analyst page hailing him as an “explosive” talent.

Despite only being 19, Cordero – who has also been labelled as “exciting” by former Magpies sporting director Paul Mitchell – managed to tally up a weighty 60 appearances for the senior side, with goals and assists aplenty also coming his way.

Cordero’s Malaga stats by position

Position

Games

Goals + Assists

LW

33

5 + 6

RW

16

2 + 3

AM

2

0

RM

1

0

Sourced by Transfermarkt

Looking at the table above, Cordero would manage to tally up a blistering 11 goal contributions for his former employers down Gordon’s usual left-hand side from just 33 appearances.

The hope will be that Newcastle landing the teenage sensation for nothing proves to be a masterstroke in time, with Cordero further capable of also playing as a right winger, or as a number ten if needed.

The promising youngster has even been noted as being “like Gordon” by analyst Ben Mattinson, with Newcastle perhaps better served now to look to the future and put their energy into the Spaniard, than persisting with Gordon to come good.

In a few years, he might well be a household name on Tyneside, with the ex-Everton attacker off the Magpies roster, subsequently.

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Bangladesh couldn’t counter the dew, and that wasn’t their only problem in Sharjah

Mohammad Isam23-May-2025Bangladesh bowlers made it easy for UAE to swing hardIn terms of numbers, Bangladesh hit more sixes than UAE in the three-match series, but UAE hit more fours, and that meant they led the boundary count. UAE also had two other factors in their favour. They hit fours and sixes in clusters, and since they chased in all three games, they timed those clusters well.This was mainly due to how the Bangladesh bowlers missed their lengths. Granted that there was dew whenever they bowled, but they couldn’t quite grasp how big-hitters like Muhammad Waseem and Asif Khan operated. Both batters often telegraphed their intention to go leg side, but the bowlers, particularly spinners Mahedi Hasan and Tanvir Islam, still allowed them the room to swing their arms to take the ball high over the midwicket or mid-on boundaries.And fast bowlers Nahid Rana and Hasan Mahmud were far too wide or far too short far too often. Tanzim Hasan found it hard to grip the ball, and Shoriful Islam started off well in both appearances, but then lost his steam, losing pace and losing his lengths.UAE tackled the dew, Bangladesh complained about itUAE’s Haider Ali said after the third T20I that he often bowls with the wet ball in training to prepare for the familiar Sharjah dew. Although it is not clear whether the Bangladesh bowlers did the same, their captain Litton Das complained about the dew after each match. Dew can only be encountered with practical methods. Complaining about something that affects a lot of games in Asian conditions took Bangladesh nowhere.When they beat West Indies 3-0 without many of their top players in December, Bangladesh seemed to adjust better to conditions. It’s also true that Bangladesh like pitches that produce 140-150 runs, which was the case in Kingstown then. They won all three games defending low totals, with their spinners bowling well under lights. There was no dew then, though, something that frustrated them in Sharjah.Parvez Hossain Emon’s century in the first T20I was one of the few highlights for Bangladesh•Emirates Cricket BoardBatters have a hit-and-miss seriesDespite putting up scores like 191 and 205, Bangladesh’s batting generally lacked consistency. Parvez Hossain Emon struck a century and Tanzid Hasan got a half-century. The openers generally gave the team good starts – Tanzid went well in all three matches. But more was expected from Litton and Towhid Hridoy.Litton is slowly coming back into some batting form. But Hridoy couldn’t get the team out of trouble when he had the opportunity in the third game.There also appears to be some lack of clarity about Najmul Hossain Shanto, who got to play only the second game. Jaker Ali took his opportunity in the third game when the top and middle order collapsed, but Mahedi and Shamim Hossain have hit-or-miss roles that they couldn’t capitalise on.The missing pace frontmanEven before the Bangladesh players boarded their flight to the UAE, there was confusion about their squad composition. Delhi Capitals (DC) had announced that Mustafizur Rahman would be joining them at IPL 2025, but the BCB said it hadn’t been approached for the no-objection certificate. Once the documents came through, the BCB allowed Mustafizur to leave for the IPL after the first match against UAE.That made a difference, Bangladesh losing a bowler who returned 2 for 17 in the first T20I, which was the only one they won. His absence became all the more glaring as the inexperienced bowlers failed to contain the UAE batters in the next two games.Carrying the scars to PakistanBangladesh would have expected to have a fairly easy time of it in Sharjah heading into the bigger series in Pakistan. How things have changed! It is now crucial that the players pick up the pieces from the series against the 15th-ranked team in T20Is. Not to forget, they had earlier lost 2-1 to USA last year. Against UAE, Bangladesh’s lack of game awareness stuck out. Pakistan are next, a team that is much better than UAE, that too in home conditions. Can Bangladesh lift themselves in Lahore?