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The San Diego Padres are in a unique situation as they head towards the 2025 MLB trade deadline. The Friars are holding on to the final wild-card spot in the National League and are certainly in need of upgrades. But they also have players other teams covet, so general manager A.J. Preller could opt to buy and sell, walking a fine line towards competitiveness.

Preller is never scared of making a big deal or taking a huge swing, and this could be the year he truly shines by treading two paths. San Diego has one of MLB's deepest bullpens, a thin starting rotation, and two holes in its lineup, and more on the bench.

What follows is a look at three moves the Padres can make before the trade deadline that would fit what they need to do perfectly.

Trade for Ramon Laureano

A lot has been written about the Padres' need for a left fielder—I know because I've written some of it. While Gavin Sheets has filled in admirably out there, he should be locked in at designated hitter. Big names like Luis Robert Jr. and Jarren Duran have been connected to San Diego, but this might be the right move. Ramon Laureno had his breakout season in 2019, but now, as a 31-year-old, he's breaking out again.

Through the first 78 games of the season, the Baltimore Orioles outfielder is slashing .279/.341/.526 with 15 home runs and 46 RBIs. That .866 OPS is his highest since 2019, and his wRC+ (136) is a career-high. Meanwhile, his underlying metrics look outstanding as he's notching near career-bests across the board. As a team, the Padres rank 24th in OPS against righties (.698) and 28th in home runs (63). Laureano's OPS against righties is .918, with a .301 batting average and 10 home runs. He fills a need and is an excellent fit.

While there are sexier options out there, Laureano's contract also has a $6.5 million club option for 2026. He shouldn't cost the prospect capital of the bigger-name outfielders, which will allow the Padres to keep high-end prospects like Leo De Vries, Ethan Salas, and a number of their young pitchers, and he can return cheaply next season. Those things should be enough to entice Preller.

Trade for Charlie Morton

There are a number of pitchers out there the Padres could take a shot at, but it's another member of the Orioles they should target. There are two reasons for this: the cost and the ability to make this deal a package, thereby reducing the return. So far this season, the San Diego has made do with a starting rotation thrown together with duct tape and tissue paper. Joe Musgrove is out for the season due to Tommy John surgery, while Yu Darvish and Michael King have both missed huge chunks of the season. That has left a rotation led by Nick Pivetta, backed up by Randy Vasquez, Stephen Kolek, and a cast of fill-ins.

Morton is a 41-year-old rental with a 5.48 ERA, which makes him sound like a punishment, not an upgrade. But the Padres need someone to eat innings, and the veteran righty has two World Series rings and a 3.60 career postseason ERA. Despite his high season ERA, from May 10 through July 10, he was 5-0 with a 2.61 ERA, 2.80 FIP, and a 1.18 WHIP over his previous 51 2/3 innings. Again, he could be a relatively cheap boost to an already good rotation.

Trade Robert Suarez

One thing the Padres have in abundance is high-end relief arms. The Padres have four of MLB's best relievers in All-Stars Robert Suarez, Adrian Morejon, and Jason Adam, plus the hard-throwing Jeremiah Estrada. There is more depth in the minor leagues, which would give them the ability to trade from a strength to get a haul of young players. The top of San Diego's minor league system lacks bats, which has reared its ugly head this season and contributed to the team's awful bench production.

With Emmanuel Clase sidelined due to a gambling investigation, Suarez would almost certainly be the top reliever available. The two-time All-Star closer is 2-4 with a 3.38 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and boasts an MLB-best 30 saves in 33 chances. His 2.27 FIP shows he's been a bit unlucky this season as well. He has an $8 million player option for 2026 he is expected to decline, so he'd be a pure rental, but the Padres have the relievers to replace him as closer. They should take advantage of the market and get as much as they can before he walks.

Opener’s century came alongside a fine all-round performance from Luc Benkenstein

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay17-Aug-2025Essex 321 for 8 (Critchley 103, Benkenstein 75, Westley 53, Holland 3-34) beat Leicestershire 261 (Masood 103, Benkenstein 3-53) by 60 runsAfter losing their opening three Metro Bank One-Day Cup matches, Essex backed up Friday’s emphatic victory over Surrey by defeating Leicestershire Foxes by 60 runs, dealing a blow to the latter’s chances of qualifying for the knock-out stages of a competition they won two years ago.A maiden List A century from opener Matt Critchley, supported by a 52-ball 75 by Luc Benkenstein, skipper Tom Westley’s 53 from 58 and Simon Harmer’s vigorous unbeaten 41 off 24 enabled Essex to rack up 321 for 8.Ian Holland (3 for 34) was excellent with the ball for the Foxes but Critchley’s solid 103 from 116 balls empowered Benkenstein and Harmer in particular to cut loose, the two hitting four sixes apiece. With no spinner in their side, the home attack lacked variety but did not help themselves by bowling 12 wides.Shan Masood (103 from 127) made the first century of his spell with Leicestershire but, with Roman Walker’s List A career-best 44 the next best against an Essex attack that had four spinners, the home side were bowled out for 261. Benkenstein took 3 for 53 with his leg breaks.After opting to bowl first on a green-tinged pitch, Leicestershire were rewarded in the fifth over when Robin Das nibbled at an outswinger by Holland and was caught behind.Ben Mike troubled Tom Westley early on but with Rishi Patel left out due to poor form with the bat and with no other spin option available after Liam Trevaskis pulled out through injury, the Foxes struggled to make inroads as Westley and Critchley added 99 in just under 19 overs. Westley survived a difficult chance to cover on 42 but hit seven boundaries in reaching 52 from 56 balls.He soon departed, superbly caught on the square leg boundary by Tom Scriven. Sol Budinger’s direct hit ran out Charlie Allison, but Critchley found another assertive partner in 20-year-old Benkenstein, who hauled Chris Wright and Wood over the rope at deep midwicket before ramping Roman Walker for another six in a 37-ball half-century, having escaped a chance to backward point on 39.The fourth-wicket pair added 127, Critchley overtaking his previous best of 64 not out as he collected nine fours in his hundred. Benkenstein hammered Mike down the ground for his fourth six but reached for a wide ball and was caught at short third.Ireland international Curtis Campher, after his debut unbeaten 123 against Surrey, was yorked first ball, after which Holland dismissed Critchley and Simon Fernandes. Scriven bowled Jamal Richards but Harmer cleared the rope four times in the last three overs.A testing target quickly became tougher as Jamie Porter removed both the Foxes’ openers in his first three overs without conceding a run, clipping Budinger’s off stump and striking Holland’s back pad in front. Lewis Hill edged Charlie Bennett to slip, leaving Leicestershire 16 for 3 in the sixth.Masood and skipper Peter Handscomb brought a wealth of experience but they needed not only to bat deep but score briskly with the required rate creeping up. They added 73 in 15 but then Handscomb found Allison on the legside boundary. New man Ben Cox was soon leg before to Westley’s off spin, leaving the home side 92 for 5.Masood completed a fifty from 70 balls but Harmer bowled Scriven for 15, after which Mike was out to Benkenstein’s leg spin without scoring.Walker batted nicely as he and Masood added 98 for the eighth wicket, Masood numbering 11 fours before he was lbw to Critchley’s leg spin, but the Foxes by then were well beaten, Benkenstein adding two more wickets as Walker and Wright found men on the boundary.

Could Daniel Farke be the next Premier League manager in line to face the sack?

While Leeds United have picked up a promising three wins so far in the Premier League, fans of the Elland Road giants will also feel that there’s been a lot of other games this season where their side have been outplayed, with their 3-0 defeat at the hands of Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday falling into this category.

The Seagulls tallied up 14 shots on Lucas Perri’s goal compared to Leeds’ weak five on Bart Verbruggen’s largely untested net, as Fabian Hurzeler’s confident hosts never looked in danger of slipping up throughout their comfortable 90 minutes.

Farke will surely have to ring the changes for Leeds’ next Premier League clash away at Nottingham Forest to try and lift his side to bounce back, and to also save his skin, with Brenden Aaronson at risk of dropping out despite scoring a week prior.

Aaronson's poor performance vs Brighton

Aaronson wanted to kick on in the Whites’ first team picture away at the Amex, having been an exhilarating watch throughout Leeds’ 2-1 home win against West Ham United, with his bundled-in opener after three minutes nearly upstaged by an insane solo strike sailing in.

Yet, the Jekyll and Hyde American was way off it on the South Coast to add to Leeds fans’ frustrations surrounding his inconsistent performances.

Come the close of the match on Saturday, Aaronson failed to complete one single successful dribble from two attempts, failed to hit a single meaningful shot at the home side’s goal, and also only won a weak three duels from the ten he attempted.

It’s night and day from his high-octane showing against Nuno Espirito Santo’s men, where he was 100% successful with all his dribbles, on top of winning a hefty eight duels.

Patience must be extremely thin; therefore, when it comes to Farke choosing to pick Aaronson week in week out, knowing that an unbelievable display is often followed up by the number 11 putting in a disastrous no-show.

But, Aaronson is not the only underperformer in the German’s bad books.

Farke must drop 4/10 Leeds star

Brighton ran the Leeds defence ragged all afternoon long, as Jayden Bogle continually failed to lay a glove on the rampaging Diego Gomez, who would finish the one-sided match with two Premier League goals next to his name.

Joe Rodon also looked way below his usual standards, but the Welshman definitely has enough credit in his bank this season alone to demand he’s still in the first team frame, having popped up with two goals from the back.

On the contrary, his centre-back partner on the South Coast in Jaka Bijol, is yet to establish himself as a fan’s favourite, and he certainly won’t have endeared himself to the hardened West Yorkshire masses with his ropey showing against Hurzeler’s runaway hosts.

Indeed, away from spraying the ball about with some assurance, the brand-new Leeds’ number 15 struggled to contain the likes of Danny Welbeck throughout, leading to just one duel being won.

On top of that, Bijol would also fail to go in for a single tackle, leading Brighton to find it easy when carving open the away side’s frail defence at will.

Moreover, the former Udinese man very much lacked the pace and determination to track back when Yankuba Minteh and the aforementioned Gomez ran riot, with Pascal Struijk perhaps the better-suited centre-back option for this showdown.

Leeds fans had been crying out for their £15m summer recruit to start more games, but after his 4/10 afternoon against Brighton – which is the low score that was handed to him post-match by Leeds Live’s Isaac Johnson – he will surely be dropped back down to the bench, for the Dutchman to return to the XI.

Farke will pray that the changes that are made spur his team on to a rare away win against Nottingham Forest next, with a loss at the City Ground only pulling Leeds even closer to the relegation zone.

Farke can unleash Stach by dropping Leeds star who's "not good enough"

Leeds United boss could bring Anton Stach back into the starting line-up by dropping this star.

By
Dan Emery

Nov 1, 2025

Wayne Rooney believes Paul Pogba is among Manchester United's three strangest signings before INEOS bought a stake in the club. The former forward delivered a scathing assessment of the club's transfer strategy before Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Co were onboarded, with their recruitment branded as 'horrendous'.

• Woodward’s chaotic years under the microscope

  Before INEOS’ partial takeover in late 2023, football operations at United were largely overseen by Ed Woodward, who held the executive vice-chairman role from 2012 until his resignation in 2021. His tenure coincided with United’s steady decline from domestic dominance to a club struggling to recapture its identity. Rooney’s comments reflect the frustration felt by fans who watched millions poured into signings that never fully delivered. Pogba’s then-world-record £89 million ($117m) return from Juventus, Romelu Lukaku’s £75m ($99m) switch from Everton, and even the short-term arrival of Zlatan Ibrahimovic on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain have now been framed as decisions which show a lack of footballing vision.

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• AFP
  

  Signs of change under INEOS

  Things have started to shift under Ratcliffe and his INEOS group, who assumed control of football operations after buying a 25 per cent stake in the club. Unlike the scattergun approach of previous years, United’s recent transfer strategy has focused on players with Premier League experience or emerging talents from abroad. This summer’s arrivals, like Bryan Mbuemo, Matheus Cunha, and Belgian goalkeeper Senne Lammens, have injected both energy and stability into the side. Each has already cemented a place in Ruben Amorim’s first-team plans, helping United climb to seventh in the Premier League table, unbeaten in their last five matches and sitting on 18 points.

  Speaking on , brought to fans by Sky Bet, Rooney said: "The recruitment at Manchester United before last summer was horrendous. They were just bringing big names in – you look at Lukaku, Zlatan, Pogba – they're good players but they were just bringing names in and spending enormous amounts of money. It's going to take a bit of time to get over those mistakes."

• Amorim's Red Devils finding form

  United’s recent performances suggest a team rediscovering its rhythm. After a shaky start to the 2025–26 campaign, the Red Devils bounced back with three consecutive Premier League wins in October, beating Sunderland, Liverpool, and Brighton. And Rooney believes that the Red Devils could qualify for the Champions League next season.

  "If you look at Manchester United over the last ten years, the players have been absolutely battered," he continued.  "Now they've got a couple of results and you can see a bit of confidence coming back. You can even say that in the manager. They're gradually getting better, there's definitely been some improvement. It's been really tough for Ruben Amorim and I've been critical of him. We are seeing them improve though and players are getting to know each other a bit better. There's some promising signs and although they're not going to win the league they could possibly sneak into the top four."

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• AFP
  

  Head coach calls for growth and grit

  But as has so often been the case at Old Trafford, progress has been fragile. November brought back-to-back 2-2 draws against Nottingham Forest and Tottenham, exposing lingering defensive frailties. Speaking to after the Tottenham draw, Amorim acknowledged the mixed emotions.

  He said: "During the game we felt like the three points were there to take home. But then with everything that happened, Harry Maguire and Casemiro coming off and conceding two goals… we scored again and it's a point. When you cannot win you don't lose, once again we did that. We have so much to grow as a team, because today was our day to win this game.

  "We need to look at ourselves, we were not pressing with the same intensity, we felt comfortable but we need to understand that if we had more bravery we kill the game. But sometimes this happens, you have a better first half than second. We believe in our capacity to score goals until the last minute. It's a little frustration, but also pride at the response of the players at the response to second goal of Tottenham. This is the tip of the iceberg, we are at the beginning of becoming a strong team, so we have a lot to do."

  United will return from the international break with a crucial clash against Everton on Monday, November 24. 

With Pant, Rahul and Iyer back in the auction pool, IPL 2025 will witness a leadership shake-up

Dustin Silgardo31-Oct-20241:19

Moody: Pant will break the IPL auction record

Teams focus on Indian players

Retention split: Indians: 36, Overseas: 10As might have been expected, the majority of players retained (78.26%) are Indians. Just two teams have retained more than one overseas player: Sunrisers Hyderabad, who have retained three, and Kolkata Knight Riders, who have retained two. Several teams have retained just one overseas player, while Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings have retained only Indian players.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Batters still dominate retentions

Retention split: Batters: 28, Allrounders: 7, Bowlers: 11
As has historically been the case, teams have focused on retaining batters over bowlers. Notably, Rajasthan Royals have just one bowler, Sandeep Sharma, among their six retentions. Similarly, SRH have just Pat Cummins as a frontline bowler. MI and Chennai Super Kings have slightly better balance since they each have a death bowler (Jasprit Bumrah and Matheesha Pathirana) and an allrounder (Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja). The two teams that have invested heavily in bowlers are Lucknow Super Giants, who have retained Mayank Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi and Mohsin Khan, and KKR, who have kept Harshit Rana and Varun Chakravarthy in addition to allrounders Sunil Narine and Andre Russell.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Eight teams go for uncapped players

In 2022, just four teams had used the option of retaining an uncapped Indian player for INR 4 crore. This time around, eight of the ten teams have done so. Only MI and SRH have not retained an uncapped player. KKR, PBKS, GT and LSG have each retained two uncapped players, the maximum allowed. DC and RCB have retained one each, while CSK and RR have made use of the new rule of players who have not played international cricket for five years being classified as uncapped. CSK have retained MS Dhoni for INR 4 crore while RR have retained Sandeep Sharma for the same amount. A total of 12 uncapped Indian players have been retained.

Just three specialist spinners retained

In recent years, teams have been reluctant to spend big on spinners who don’t also add value with the bat, and that trend continues. Among the 46 retentions, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi and Varun Chakravarthy are the only three retained purely for their spin bowling. Ravindra Jadeja, Rashid Khan, Axar Patel and Sunil Narine are four spin-bowling allrounders among the retentions. Among the experienced spinners going into the auction are Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Maheesh Theekshana and Rahul Chahar.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Five teams release their captains

LSG, DC, RCB, PBKS and defending champions KKR have all released their captains. While LSG might look at Nicholas Pooran as a leadership option and RCB may go back to Virat Kohli as captain, it is likely KKR, DC and PBKS will be looking for captains during the auction. This could increase the value of players with captaincy experience. Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Faf du Plessis, Aiden Markram, Steven Smith and Nitish Rana are among the auction-bound players with prior captaincy experience. Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes, who have captained England, may also be in demand.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Captains sacrifice pay

In addition to the five captains released, three others have agreed to stay at their franchise as second retentions. Hardik Pandya will be paid INR 16.35 crore (less than Jasprit Bumrah), Shubman Gill INR 16.50 crore (less than Rashid Khan), and Pat Cummins INR 18 crore (less than Heinrich Klaasen). The only two captains who are their team’s joint-top retentions are Ruturaj Gaikwad (INR 18 crore) and Sanju Samson (INR 18 crore).Other marquee players have also agreed to lower price slabs to help their teams balance their purses. MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma are notable among them, but Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Axar Patel and Suryakumar Yadav have also agreed to amounts less than what they might have earned in the auction.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

KKR and DC spend less than deductions

KKR and DC are the only teams who have chosen to pay their players less than the total amount they will have deducted from their purse. KKR have spent just INR 57 crore on their six retentions but will have INR 69 crore deducted from their purse since they have retained four capped players, which means a deduction of INR 61 crore, and two uncapped players, which means a deduction of INR 8 crore. Rinku Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Sunil Narine and Andre Russell have all agreed to amounts less than the retention slabs set by the IPL. Delhi Capitals are also paying their capped players less than what they will be deducted for them. Axar Patel will be paid INR 16.50 crore instead of INR 18 crore, Kuldeep Yadav INR 13.25 crore instead of INR 14 crore, and Tristan Stubbs INR 10 crore instead of INR 11 crore.All the other teams have balanced the amounts paid to their retained players so that none, except Punjab Kings, have gone over the minimum deduction. While SRH have paid Heinrich Klaasen INR 5 crore more than the maximum slab, they have saved that amount by paying Nitish Kumar Reddy INR 6 crore instead of INR 11 crore. Similarly, RCB and LSG have saved the extra INR 3 crores they are paying Nicholas Pooran and Virat Kohli by paying their other capped retentions less. Shubman Gill has agreed to be Gujarat Titans’ second retention, at INR 16.50 crore, and the extra INR 2.50 crore spent there has been balanced by paying Sai Sudharsan INR 8.50 crore instead of INR 11 crore. CSK and MI have split their purse too, with Rohit Sharma being paid less than Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav.

The six-foot-six cricketer talks about how he evolved from a chubby kid to a death-overs specialist

Firdose Moonda09-Oct-2025If you’re interested in gaining height, Zimbabwe’s Richard Ngarava, who stands at 1.98 metres, is willing to let you in on his secret.”Anyone who asks me how I got tall, I tell them I only ate vegetables,” Ngarava says, the day after he helped Zimbabwe qualify for next year’s T20 World Cup. He is, of course, not being entirely serious, but his growth spurt from a “chubby and short” young teen to a lean, lanky one coincided with him deciding to take his health seriously.”I put myself on a diet, and I don’t even know why I did it,” he says. “At that time I was a batter and I bowled a bit of spin but in Grade Nine everything just changed. For close to four years, I was on a diet and I made sure I didn’t miss any gym sessions. As a young boy, I loved pizza and fried chicken but I cut those out and told myself I am going to eat fruits and vegetables, and drink water only. That’s when I became tall.”Related

• Namibia, Zimbabwe qualify for 2026 men's T20 World Cup

• Ngarava, Bennett and Musekiwa set up thrilling Zimbabwe win

• Zimbabwe seal Sylhet thriller to complete first away Test win since 2021

At the time, Ngarava was a student at Churchill School but playing club cricket in the area he grew up in, Harare’s Highfield, which is home to the famous Takashinga Cricket Club. Also part of the club was Blessing Muzarabani, presumably born tall and currently 2.07 metres. The pair became friends. “We went to different schools but we both played for the same Takashinga age-group team. We’ve been pushing each other since we were Under-12s,” Ngarava says.There was one important difference between the Ngarava and Muzarabani of the early 2000s and the players they are now. “Back then, Blessing was a legspinner and I was mostly a batter,” Ngarava says.Also, incidentally the first time he came to international attention it was, in fact, for something that happened when he was batting. At the 2016 Under-19 World Cup, Ngarava was run-out at the non-striker’s end by Keemo Paul of West Indies. Zimbabwe needed just two runs to win that match when Ngarava was dismissed. The run-out put West Indies in the quarter-final and sparked a debate about the spirit of cricket.”When it happened, I thought it was a ruse,” Ngarava says. “I was not really happy when I walked off the field and everyone else was not happy in the dressing room. We later understood that it was part of the game. But what I didn’t like about the situation was, there was no warning from anyone.”While bowlers are not obliged to warn batters who are backing up too far, and there is no rule against running out a batter at the non-striker’s end, in some circles it is thought of as polite to give a batter a warning. This has been at the heart of some of cricket’s culture wars in recent times.Has Ngarava ever thought of running a non-striker out while bowling? “At some point maybe. But then I figured, nah, I just want to play normal cricket. I don’t want to mess with people’s moods.”Ngarava got into fast bowling looking to hurt people but then realised he liked taking wickets more•AFP/Getty ImagesAgain, not entirely true, because Ngarava says he turned to fast bowling as a teenager because he quite enjoyed just hurting people. Slowly he started to change that outlook. Under the guidance of his school coach George Tande he discovered an ability to swing the ball. “I actually like taking wickets more than hurting people,” he realised.He made Zimbabwe’s age-group sides in his mid-teens and continued to represent Takashinga and was part of their first team. He credits them with his growth, particularly the club’s trips to Uganda, where they played that country’s national side. “We didn’t look at those as just normal games or club games, we looked at them as international games because we were playing Uganda,” he says.One day, when he was around 18, he received a call while he was in Uganda. It was his international call-up.Ngarava made his debut against Afghanistan in an ODI in 2017, and two and a half years after that, played his first T20I. Though he was always comfortable opening the bowling, he soon became interested in bowling at the end of an innings. “I wanted to be the best death bowler in the team,” he says. “But I ended up developing more skills as I played more games. I used to enjoy just bowling yorkers and short balls but I’ve now added some other skills to my game.”The appointment of Charl Langeveldt to Zimbabwe’s coaching staff in the middle of 2024 was a game changer for Ngarava. It was around then that he developed an important weapon.”The wobble seam has done so much for me,” he says. “Sometimes you don’t really know what the ball is going to do [with a wobbly seam] but I just want to target that fifth-stump line or fourth-stump line and whatever the ball is going to do there, I’m quite happy with it.”It’s different from the normal seam, where you can actually see the seam from the hand and it’s easy to pick. I’ve seen the English bowlers are doing it now more often, where they’re wobbling the ball. It’s also different from Jimmy Anderson, where he actually had to make sure that his seam is up for him to swing the ball.”Ngarava got a first hand-hand look at the English bowlers when Zimbabwe toured there earlier this year to play a first Test in that country in over two decades. He was named in the starting XI and bowled nine overs in the first innings but could play no further part in the match after suffering a back injury on day one.Ngarava is ferried off the field after he hurt his back in the Test against England earlier this year•PA Photos/Getty Images”It’s not a nice feeling to get injured and still get to hang around the ground and see the boys playing,” he says. “It was really disappointing considering it was historic. We hadn’t played England for so long and I also wanted to perform,” he says. “I felt bad for the team and I asked myself, ‘Is this the right time to get injured?’ even though I knew I couldn’t control it. I tried to hide those emotions and didn’t show them to anyone.”The issue was caused by a bulging vertebral disc and Ngarava has not played in any of Zimbabwe’s four Tests since. That has been tough because he says playing the longest format is “something that I really want to do”. Of course, Zimbabwe are not part of the World Test Championship, and for now, their focus is on the next two major white-ball tournaments: the 2026 T20 World Cup and the 2027 ODI World Cup. They will co-host the latter with South Africa and Namibia.Getting to the first of those was crucial for maintaining the relevance of Zimbabwe cricket, after they were the only Full Member to miss out on the 2024 T20 World Cup because they lost to Uganda in the qualifiers. This time, Zimbabwe beat Uganda easily, Ngarava removed their best batter Raizat Ali Shah and also finished as the joint leading bowler at the event. In the process he also became the first Zimbabwean to 100 T20I wickets.Ordinarily you would expect a team and one of their key players to celebrate under the circumstances, but Zimbabwe and Ngarava are just relieved. “It was quite nice to qualify in front of the Harare fans but everyone is not really expressing the way they feel,” he says. “Maybe guys are still not sure that we actually qualified. Everyone is just calm about it because we’ve got that understanding of us wanting to actually play for the team more than individual performances.”But there is also excitement. “I can’t wait to be on that plane to India and Sri Lanka and then also play the 50-over World Cup, and hopefully we will do something for the fans.”Ngarava already has some experience of Sri Lanka from his time in the Lanka Premier League in 2023 and on two tours there for Zimbabwe. His LPL appearance was the first of several league gigs, including the BPL and the ILT20, though he hasn’t yet played a game in those last two leagues. Most recently he picked up a deal at Sharjah Warriors in the ILT20, for whom he hopes to play in the UAE ahead of the T20 World Cup. His new-ball partner, Muzarabani, will also be there, for Gulf Giants, as the two bowlers’ journeys continue to mirror each other.”It’s funny how we’re both now seam bowlers,” Ngarava says. “I don’t really know how it happened,” But he does. They’re both very, very tall and he knows how that helps. “Before talent or before anything else, having good height as a fast bowler gives you an extra advantage.”

Fifties for Ben Charlesworth, Miles Hammond and James Bracey cement strong position against weakened hosts

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay08-Sep-2025Runaway Division Two leaders Leicestershire edged closer to winning promotion for the first time in their history even though Gloucestershire had the better of things at the Uptonsteel County Ground, finishing day one of their Rothesay County Championship clash on 382 for 7.Needing 20 points from their final three fixtures to be sure of playing Division One cricket next season, they already have two of those. With third-placed Derbyshire able to claim only one batting point at Lord’s, they effectively need 16 more.They have work to do here, though, with Gloucestershire in a strong position, even after losing Graeme van Buuren for 101 from the penultimate ball of the day.The South African-born allrounder 14 fours and a six in a fine, 143-ball innings, supplemented by half-centuries from Ben Charlesworth, James Bracey and Miles Hammond after Gloucestershire’s interim skipper Bracey chose to bat first.Leicestershire veteran Chris Wright took 3 for 56 and left-arm quick Josh Hull 3 for 79, although the 21-year-old’s day ended somewhat ignominiously when a second full toss above waist height saw him ordered out of the attack for the remainder of the innings. Regularly called for overstepping too, Hull racked up 11 no-balls in total.Gloucestershire, themselves not mathematically out of the running for a promotion place, made two changes from their most recent Championship side. Cameron Bancroft and Todd Murphy have both returned to Australia.Leicestershire made five. Peter Handscomb, whose captaincy has been an important element of the county winning six matches so far, has also gone home for the Australian domestic season, giving the armband to Ian Holland, who had not previously led a team at senior level.The availability of Shan Masood, who is staying on after his white-ball stint, and the arrival from Middlesex of Steve Eskinazi, bolstered the batting but with Rehan Ahmed on England duty and Ben Green recalled from loan by parent club Somerset, injuries to Tom Scriven and Liam Trevaskis further weakened their bowling hand.They seemed to feel it in a morning session which, apart from 10 minutes or so during Hull’s opening burst of the day, belonged to the visitors, who were 129 for 2 at lunch after Charlesworth took advantage of too many easy scoring opportunities offered up by the home attack with 10 fours in reaching 52 from 75 balls.Hull’s two successes came as 21-year-old Joe Phillips, opening in regular captain Bancroft’s place, was bowled off an inside edge by a yorker-length delivery and Ben Cox took a diving catch behind the stumps to remove Ollie Price.Leicestershire stemmed the flow of boundaries in the afternoon, earning an important breakthrough when Wright, now well into the autumn of his career, produced a delivery from his heyday to hit the top of Charlesworth’s off stump.Another came when Hammond, becoming increasingly frustrated despite reaching fifty for the eighth time this season, was tempted into pulling a shorter delivery from Hull and was caught at deep backward square. The innings took him past 800 runs for this season but he is still without a century.From 230 for 4 at tea, however, Gloucestershire advanced to a position of strength by the close, Leicestershire’s cause not helped by some untidiness creeping back into their bowling.Apart from Hull’s waywardness and subsequent removal, Ben Mike struggled for rhythm, conceding four boundaries to Bracey in the same over as the the left-hander quickly built on a 92-ball half-century, although he did have the misfortune to see van Buuren caught off a no-ball on 55.Worryingly for the home side, Mike limped off before the close with what looked like another recurrence of his recent hamstring problems.Leicestershire had to wait until the second new ball became available to make another breakthrough but two wickets in the space of six overs gave them a second bowling bonus point, Bracey edging to second slip attempting to drive Holland before Wright found some extra bounce and the edge of Jack Taylor’s bat, then trapping van Buuren in front to close proceedings for the day.