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The first four-day unofficial Test Match between Sri Lanka A and PakistanA was heading for a tight finish at the Rangiri Dambulla InternationalStadium following a close tussle for honours on the third day Friday.Hasan Raza, the Pakistan A captain, completed his tenth first-class century- a chanceless knock of 107 – to give his side a slender first innings leadof three runs.By the close of the third day, Sri Lanka A had made 176 for six in their second innings to hold an overall lead of 173 going into the final day on Saturday.The result of the match hinges on what sort of target Sri Lanka A will set Pakistan A, and the number of overs they will give their bowlers to take ten wickets.Sri Lanka A scored 220 in their first innings and Pakistan A repliedwith 223.Sri Lanka A recovered from losing openers Dhammika Sudarshana and IanDaniel for 34 through a third-wicket stand of 112 between Michael Vandortand Kumar Sangakkara which lifted Sri Lanka A to a healthy 146 for two.But the dismissal of Vandort for 84 and Sangakkara for 54 before the close,saw Sri Lanka A lose four wickets for 28 runs on a pitch which isbecoming increasingly difficult for batting.The tall Vandort, using his height advantage, stroked his way to a maidenhalf-century in international cricket. He reached his fifty with a straightdrive for four off Toufiq Umer and celebrated it with an on-drive off thenext delivery. It took him 100 minutes and 85 balls with seven fours.Vandort survived a chance at 63 when Danish Kenaria dropped an easy catchat deep mid-wicket off Qaiser Abbas and, with a century there for the taking, he fell lbw to Irfan as he played across the line. Vandort batted for 183 minutes and faced 143 balls for his score of 84 which comprised eight fours and a six over long-on off leg-spinner Kaneria.The left-hander, playing most of his shots off the front foot and excellingon the drive, has fulfilled the promise he showed when he broke intofirst-class cricket two years ago by scoring two double centuries for CCCin the Premier trophy tournament.Upekha Fernando and Chamara Silva did not last long, falling within ten runsof each other, but Tilan Samaraweera stayed with Sangakkara to see himthrough to his half-century.Sangakkara, struggling to find his form, took 80 balls for his first 40runs, but went into his shell thereafter and required a further 68 balls toscore the next ten runs for his half-century. He batted for 200 minutes andreached the boundary six times.Resuming at his overnight score of 89, the 19-year-old right-hander Razastruck two fours, one each off fast bowler Ruchira Perera and left-armspinner Sajeeva Weerakoon to move to his century in the tenth over of themorning. It took him 356 minutes and came off 259 balls with the help ofnine fours.Raza became only the second cricketer to complete a century on this ground.Last month Nicky Degroot, playing for Canada, made 113 against North CentralProvince in a limited-overs game.Raza lost his wicket shortly afterwards when he was rapped on the pads onceby Weerakoon and adjudged lbw off the next delivery for 107. The batsmanseemed unhappy with the decision, as he departed with Pakistan stilltrailing Sri Lanka by two runs.Raza batted for 377 minutes and faced 283 balls, hitting ten fours.The innings was ended 68 minutes into the third day when Weerakoon bowledIrfan Fazil for ten to finish with figures of three for 64. His spell onFriday was two for 19 off 8.2 overs.

Having joined Tottenham Hotspur in what was an £11m move back in August of 2016, hopes for Georges-Kevin N’Koudou would have undoubtedly been extremely high in north London.

Indeed, the then-21-year-old – who himself claimed was an “explosive” player – had just enjoyed an incredibly impressive season with Olympique Marseille, scoring five goals and registering three assists over 28 Ligue 1 fixtures, as well as bagging four goals and two assists over seven Europe League outings and one goal in one Coupe de la Ligue appearance.

As such, Daniel Levy’s signing of the then-France U21 international, as well as the chairman’s decision to hand the winger a five-year deal on a reported £35k-per-week, appeared to be an astute piece of business for Tottenham.

However, after failing to make any real impression within Mauricio Pochettino’s side during his debut season in north London – starting just two of his 17 appearances in all competitions – as well as featuring sparingly in the first half of the 2017/18 campaign – starting one of his loaned out to Burnley that winter, where the attacker once again failed to impress over his eight appearances for the Clarets.

After returning to Spurs in the summer of 2018, the Frenchman once again spent the majority of his time on the touchline in 2018/19, making a mere shipped out on a temporary basis in the January transfer window – this time to AS Monaco, where the £4.23m-rated man would also feature just three times that season.

Then, in the summer of 2019, after making a grand total of just 27 appearances for Tottenham, the winger who Pochettino once dubbed a “problem” was finally cut loose, with Besiktas taking the 27-year-old off of Spurs’ hands.

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As such, considering his £11m transfer fee, in addition to his £35k-per-week salary over his 155-week stay in north London, it is clear to see that N’Koudou well and truly rinsed Daniel Levy – as the Frenchman undoubtedly proved to be one of the club’s biggest flops in recent memory.

AND in other news: Conte can unearth his next 19 y/o “killer” in THFC sensation who’s an “immense talent”

	Matthew Hayden unveiled the reverse-sweep for the first time in Tests and had mixed results © Getty Images

Matthew Hayden overcame a nagging thigh injury to move level with Don Bradman on Australia’s list of century makers with 29. Hayden’s 123 helped Australia earn a lead of 213 entering the final day and he is confident they already have enough to defeat India and secure a world-record equalling 16th victory.”We’ve given ourselves the best chance of winning,” he said. “We can make up time, we’re in there with a shot, which is great.” Hayden predicted Australia would increase the lead to about 260 before declaring but believed “we’ve got too many runs now”.Hayden will wait to see how bad his leg problem is in the morning before deciding how to prepare for the third Test in Perth on January 16. “I’m pretty sore and I’ll just have to see how I pull up,” he said. “It’s the first time I’ve ever used a runner in a Test. It was ironic that Ricky Ponting, the captain, was running for me, I got a bit of a giggle out of that.”Ponting was called after falling to Harbhajan Singh for 1 and he was offering plenty of advice to Hayden while he batted. “I’m not sure who was doing the most talking, the captain or Michael Hussey,” he said. “But I’d be an idiot not to listen.”Hayden unveiled the reverse-sweep for the first time in Tests as a way of trying to escape India’s restrictive fields and had mixed results. He hit a four with the shot to bring up his half-century but fell when he tried another. Despite getting solid contact, he found Wasim Jaffer behind point to end his 196-ball innings, which included 12 fours.Only Ricky Ponting (33) and Steve Waugh (32) have more hundreds for Australia than Hayden, who also passed Mark Waugh’s career collection of 8029 during the display to become the fourth highest run-scorer in the country’s history. “The Don was an incredible personality in the game and he didn’t play anywhere near as much as we do,” Hayden said. “But it was significant when I passed his runs and it was significant when I passed his highest score. I very humbly accept these privileges and know how privileged I am to touch Bradman.”

The Warriors batsman HD Ackerman has been suspended for the final Supersport Series match as well as the first two Pro20 games after breaching Cricket South Africa’s code of conduct.Ackerman was found guilty by Advocate Michael Kuper SC for breaking clauses 1.2 and 1.5 – which relate to dissent and conduct which could bring the game into disrepute – following the Warriors’ Supersport series match against the Titans at Port Elizabeth on February 1.He will now miss the four-day match against the Eagles starting on February 15 and the opening two Pro20 matches on February 21 and 23 against the Eagles and the Dolphins.

Dan Marsh was a regular for the Tigers before his shoulder problem © Getty Images

Dan Marsh, the Tasmania captain who led them to last summer’s ING Cup, will play his first game of the season after recovering from a shoulder injury to face Western Australia in the Pura Cup match at Bellerive Oval on Wednesday. Marsh will take over the leadership from Michael Di Ventuo, who scored 105 in the 13-run loss to the Warriors on Sunday, and the Tigers have also been helped by the return of the fast bowler Brett Geeves.Geeves came back from an ankle problem in the limited-overs match at Devonport, taking an expensive 1 for 57 in 6.2 overs, and he has been included in the squad instead of Darren McNees. The spinner Shannon Tubb has been dropped to accommodate Marsh.South Australia have been boosted by the recoveries of Paul Rofe and Greg Blewett from fitness problems for the game against Victoria at Adelaide Oval starting on Thursday. Rofe will face a fitness test on his knee, which was operated on earlier this month to repair cartilage, but Blewett has been cleared after straining his thigh two weeks ago. Ben Cameron missed out on a place in the squad while Matthew Elliott, who hurt his knee last week, was not considered.Tasmania squad David Dawson, Travis Birt, Michael Bevan, Michael Di Venuto, George Bailey, Dan Marsh (capt), Adam Griffith, Sean Clingeleffer (wk), Xavier Doherty, Brett Geeves, Brendan Drew, Ben Hilfenhaus.South Australia squad Shane Deitz, Greg Blewett, Mark Cosgrove, Cameron Borgas, Darren Lehmann (capt), Callum Ferguson, Graham Manou (wk), Mark Cleary, Jason Gillespie, Paul Rofe, Cullen Bailey, Shaun Tait.

Waiting for a visa, perhaps?© Getty Images

The Indian government plans to issue 10,000 visas to Pakistani fans who wish to travel with their team during Pakistan’s tour of India. According to a Reuters report, there will be special camps set up in Pakistan to facilitate the process.An unnamed Indian official was quoted as saying: “We are expecting a huge demand for visas and plan to have special visa camps in Pakistan to issue up to 10,000 visas. We might even allow Pakistanis to obtain special permits and drive in their cars into India to watch the match in Mohali.” Mohali is a three-hour drive from Wagah, the border crossing in Punjab.During India’s tour of Pakistan last year, the Pakistan government had issued more than 8000 visas, and the Indians fans were treated warmly throughout the series. Whether a similar amount of goodwill is generated during this tour remains to be seen, but the Indian government is certainly doing all it can to enable it.

Scoreboards for 29 NovemberPEARCE CUPNorth City v Karori

KaroriW Sommerville c Kerse b Riley 26S Allen c Quarterman b Riley 40S Murdoch run out 34M Hill c Riley b Bowden 17C Cakebread b Gillespie 31S Pomare c Bowden b Kerse 23L Edwards not out 65B Horsley c Jansen b Riley 21R Wilson c Gore b Gillespie 6A Mercer b Riley 1E Gray not out 0Extras (14lb,9w,2nb) 25Total (for 9 wkts) 289Fall: 75,81,101,151,175,201,267,279,289Bowling: Gillespie 10,1,52,2; Quarterman 10,0,48,0; Bowden 10,1,50,1; Riley 10,3,43,3; Taylor 8,0,59,0; Kerse 2,0,23,1North CityB Jansen b Gray 24D Gore c Allen b Edwards 0C Riley c & b Mercer 8D Bowden c Mercer b Cakebread 25S Mills c Allen b Hill 6M Gillespie c Mercer b Cakebread 4D Opie b Mercer 27D Taylor c Allen b Hill 6D Carey c Wilson b Pomare 8J Kerse not out 0F Quarterman st Allen b Pomare 0Extras (10lb, 9w,2nb) 21Total 129Fall: 1,24,61,74,79,81,96,129,129,129Bowling: Edwards 5,0,35,1; Mercer 9,1,22,2; Gray 8,3,11,1; Hill 7,0,21,2; Cakebread 3,0,17,2; Pomare 4.5,1,23,2Karori won by 160 runsPetone/Riverside v Eastern SuburbsEastsS Golder c Morgan b Taylor 4P Parker c Bonner b Taylor 52C McKenzie c Morgan b Day 10D Houpapa b O’Brien 42T Boyer b Dawson 1R Sewell b Dawson 5L Dry not out 12S Hotter c Patel b Dawson 2J Patel b Dawson 1J Stuart lbw b Dawson 0R Fouhy b O’Brien 3Extras 32Total 154Bowling: Taylor 10,0,33,2; O’Brien 9,1,26,2; Hewson 10,5,20,0; Day 10,1,31,1; Patel 1,0,7,0; Dawson 9,0,27,5Petone/RiversideJ Morgan c Golder b Hotter 3M Rose c Sewell b Hotter 5S Bonner lbw b Hotter 0R Dawson b Stuart 2R Chatfield lbw b Dry 51M Hewson b Stuart 0I O’Brien lbw b Fouhy 25A George c Dry b Hotter 13J Patel not out 40P Taylor not out 1Extras (1b,4lb,9w,2nb) 16Total (for 8 wkts) 156Bowling: Hotter 9.4,3,31,4; Fouhy 10,5,17,1; Stuart 5,0,30,2; Boyer 10,0,38,0; Patel 4,0,25,0; Dry 10,6,10,1Petone/Riverside won by 2 wicketsNaenae v Upper ValleyUpper ValleyM Bell not out 92L Morgan c Crook b Bascand 46C McLauchlan c S Cross b Young 1G Donaldson run out 19D Ruscoe run out 6C Donaldson run out 8S Brockelbank c & b Crook 4P Hutchison not out 5Extras (4b,13lb,15w,3nb) 35Total (for six wkts) 216Fall: 91,95,153,169,189,194Bowling: S Cross 10,1,33,0; C Cross 10,2,29,0; Reeves 3,0,18,0; Bascand 10,0,39,1; Young 7,0,33,1; Hayman 6,0,27,0; Crook 4,0,20,1NaenaeD Crook c Roberts b Cornish 17M Young c Bell b Cornish 8M Hayman c McLauchlan b Billmore 12C Cross lbw b Cornish 1D O’Connor b Brockelbank 0S Cross run out 15L Reeves b C Donaldson 0P Bascand b Hutchison 30J Hatwell b Billmore 1B Smith not out 6G Maher c Bell b Hutchison 0Extras (5b,5lb,19w,10nb) 39Total 129Fall: 30,30,34,39,74,74,88,98,127,129Bowling: Hutchison 10,4,23,2; Cornish 8,1,30,3; Brockelbank 4,0,22,1; C Donaldson 7,2,28,1; Billmore 10,4,16,2Upper Valley won by 87 runsTaita v OnslowOnslowR Morgan b Pegg 9M Parlane st Teepa b F Boyle 48G Bidwell b Webster 57N Parlane not out 81M Pasupati c J Boyle b Little 5Extras (2b,9lb,6w,2nb) 19Total (for 4 wkts) 219/4Bowling: Webster 10,1,41,1; Little 10,1,46,1; Scott 10,2,30,0; Pegg 9,1,46,1; McGavin 2,1,3,0; F Boyle 9,0,42,1TaitaJ Boyle b Penn 0B Seddon c Morgan b Johnson 1D Little b Johnson 6J Peters c Martin b Johnson 13A Crummy c N Parlane b Penn 0S McGavin c Pasupati b Johnson 2S Teepa c M Parlane b Pasupati 2R Webster c N Parlane b Diver 23F Boyle c M Parlane b Diver 4D Pegg b Pasupati 13D Scott not out 0Extras (6lb,4w,3nb) 13Total 77Bowling: Penn 7,0,23,2; Johnson 10,3,16,4; Pasupati 7.1,0,23,2; Diver 4,1,10,2Onslow won by 142 runsPoints: North City 33.98; Karori 33.64; Petone/Riverside 32.48; Eastern Suburbs 26.20; Upper Valley 26.12; Onslow 24.22; Taita 17.98; Naenae 11.80Hazlett TrophyJohnsonville 219-5 (G Powell 50, M Judge 34, L Woodcock 34, B Kropp 3-49) beat North City 66 ( T Antequil 3-14, B Inglis 3-22) by 153 runs.Upper Valley 200 (N Herdman 43, P Arkinstall 38, B Rapson 3-22, S Thomas 3-27, D Eparaima 3-48) beat University 125 ( N Herdman 4-36, C McDonald 3-16) by 75 runsWainui 148-9 (C Foster 40, P Mohan 34, C Stewart 3-30) lost to Hutt Districts 149-4 ( M Jefferson 66, K Lennon 34 ) by 6 wicketsEasts 203-8 (J Cranch 55, L Chrisp 33, G Sutherland 3-48) lost to Collegians 204-8 ( S McHardy 37, J Lampard 32,A Thompson 3-37) by 2 wicketsPoints: Hutt Districts 51.79; Johnsonville 47.18; University 29.91; Wainui 29.83; Collegians 26.80; Upper Valley 21.51; Easts 19.02; North City 12.63

Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium is finally emerging from anembarrassing string of financial and ownership disputes that have marred itsshort history since being raised from scrub in 155 days.By July, the problems had became so intractable that contractors laid downtheir tools and the shiny new stadium, situated in the central drylands,became off-limits for touring sides.

Dambulla Stadium ©CricInfo

However, the ground was reopened to stage the current third unofficial Testmatch between Kenya and Sri Lanka A and the Chairman of the Board of Controlfor Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL), Vijaya Malalsekera, is hopeful that alldisputes will now be resolved in the coming weeks.Dambulla’s controversial tale started right from the projects inception,with the cricket community divided as to the value of building a 25,000seater stadium in such a remote rural area.Thilanga Sumathipala championed the project as the President of the BCCSL,arguing that the stadium would help develop the game in the outstations andprotect television revenues from the vagaries of the weather.Others were skeptical of Sumathipala’s rationale, believing the plan to be awaste of precious developmental resources.However, undeterred, Sumathipala drove the project with manic zeal, from thedrawing board into reality in the space of just five months, just in time tostage its inaugural match against England last March.But soon after that match, the real problems began.Sumathipala had been so determined to have the projected completed in timefor the England match that the costs had soared, from the original 150million rupee (USD $ 1.5m) forecast to a final bill that will be close to500 million rupees (USD $5m).Next, in a surprise move, Sports Minister Lakshmann Kiriella – apparentlyacting upon a request from President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga -dissolved the Cricket Board on a constitutional technicality.An Interim Committee was appointed to run the affairs of the board and aProbe Committee was established to investigate allegations of financialmismanagement during Sumathipala’s terms in office.

©CricInfo

The awarding of contracts to building constructors for the Dambulla projectand the payment of those appointed contractors soon became one of the focalpoints of the investigation.The Attorney General’s department ordered the Interim Committee to freezeall further payments to constructors until such time as a properinvestigation had been completed.Sierra Constructors, the principal construction company, sealed off theground, refusing access to the BCCSL until they had received full payment.Sierra’s hardline stance mellowed with time, allowing matches to be playedagainst Canada and Pakistan A, but the payment dispute rumbled on.Meanwhile, Sumathipala successfully challenged the Probe Committee in thecourts, claiming that the appointment of its members was political motivatedwith the committee stacked full of opponents. The investigation ground to ahalt.Further problems arose over the legal standing of the lease signed by theCricket Board and the Rangiri Dambulla temple authorities, who own the65-acre plot of land on which the stadium was constructed.The government ministry dealing with Buddhist affairs argued that the leasehad been signed without their prior permission and was therefore unlawful.As the payment dispute and ownership dispute dragged on, the SportsMinistry, acting on rumours that Sierra were considering last-minute legalaction to disrupt the games, prevented three one-day matches being hostedduring the Coca-Cola Cup with India and New Zealand in August 2001.

©CricInfo

The venue was also avoided during tours by West Indies and Zimbabwe later inthe year.However, finally, with the assistance of a new Sports Minister, JohnstoneFernando, anxious that the problems be quickly resolved, both the paymentand ownership disputes are close to resolution.The Attorney General has now given the all clear to the Cricket Board tostart paying the final balance payments due to the building contractors.Chairman of the Interim Committee of the BCCSL, said: “In two weeks time theInterim Committee will meet and we will decide on the final payment of theoutstanding balance which is approximately 162 million rupees (USD $ 1.6m).Sierra, and the numerous other contractors still owed money, will be paid infull if they provide a detailed and acceptable breakdown of the costsincurred.The BCCSL are also hopeful that the legal wrangle over the lease will besettled shortly after assistance from new Interim Committee member andimminent lawyer, Nalin Laduwahetty, who took over responsibility for thecomplex issue.The Sports Minister has also played his part, calling for the BudhasasanaJustice and Law Reforms Minister V.J.M. Lokubandara to intervene and bringabout a settlement between the Dambulla temple authorities and the ministry.It’s a settlement long overdue and even those with initial reservationsabout the project will be pleased that one of the most scenic venues in theworld will finally be able to start repaying the considerable sum of moneyinvested in it.

Sri Lanka gained the second victory of their South African tour when they beat a KwaZulu-Natal XI by 57 runs at the Chatsworth Oval on Tuesday, but they may well have been left wondering exactly what had been achieved.Exactly one week before the first Test match against South Africa the Sri Lankans found themselves playing a one-day game against a young and understrength Natal team. If that makes little sense, then think about an itinerary which goes: two one-day internationals, two Test matches, four one-day internationals, one Test.It’s fair to say, then Tuesday’s match did very little for the tourists in terms of getting them ready for Kingsmead on Boxing Day. And it was, perhaps because of its pointlessness, a fairly desultory affair.Sri Lanka’s 266 for eight was built around Mahela Jayawardene’s 85, an innings which lasted 88 and in which Jayawardene helped himself to seven fours and a six. There were contributions of 28 from Kumar Sangakkara and 23 from Russel Arnold, but the kick towards the end came from Chaminda Vaas who thumped out 52 off 41 balls, clubbing three sixes during the course of his innings.Vaas probably felt it was the least he owed his team. Virtually the first thing he did on arriving at the crease was to run out Arnold.In reply Natal slipped to 120 for seven before Gulam Bodi, with 53, and Gary Gilder (28) got stuck into the Sri Lankan bowling. They put on 70 for the eighth wicket, but it was very much a case of being too little too late and the innings lasted two balls less than 45 overs before closing at 209.Sri Lanka now play a three-day game against Natal in Pietermaritzburg in circumstances that, all being well, should more closely approximate what they might expect in next week’s Test match.

West Ham United travel to fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur later today in the Premier League with both sides well in the race for European qualification.

The Hammers sit in sixth, level on 48 points with Spurs in seventh, although Antonio Conte’s side do have a game in hand.

However, they go into the match with just 48 hours of rest having famously beaten Spanish outfit Sevilla in the Europa League on Thursday night, with the contest going to extra-time.

With nine league matches to go as well as at least two more games in Europe as David Moyes’ side take on French side Olympique Lyon in the quarter-final, the East London club are now in their season’s crunch period, and the next couple of weeks could decide whether or not they will secure European football for next season.

Today’s meeting with Tottenham is of significant magnitude given the current placings of both sides, meaning that Moyes has to get his team selection spot on. However, having had a good chunk of his squad play 120 minutes on Thursday, the Scotsman may be keen to make a few alterations.

One change that could certainly be made is the expulsion of winger Said Benrahma from the starting lineup, who has blown hot and cold of late.

On the chalkboard

The Algerian did provide two assists in the 2-1 win against Aston Villa last weekend, however, the 26-year-old hadn’t offered a goal contribution prior since New Year’s Day.

After a strong start to the season, Benrahma’s form in front of goal has certainly tailed off. Having scored three goals and registered two assists in his first five appearances of the Premier League season, the 26-year-old has since scored just twice in the top-flight, with those goals coming in back-to-back games against Southampton and Watford at the end of December.

Last season saw the former Brentford man struggle in the final third too in his first season as a Hammer, taking until mid-May to score his sole goal for Moyes’ side despite making the move from West London to East London for a significant fee of £20m.

Of course, the £22.5m-rated Algeria international has improved, however, the lack of consistency must be infuriating for Moyes and the West Ham faithful, especially given how talented the playmaker can be on his day.

This was a topic the Scotsman discussed in his column in the Evening Standard last season after a game against Burnley, saying: “Said Benrahma also did well the other night [against Burnley].

“I am looking for more consistency from him, though, in his level of training and in the step up to the Premier League.

“He demonstrated in the Championship with Brentford what he is capable of achieving and he will be able to do it in the Premier League.

“His decisions have to be something we can all understand and we can read, and I actually think he needs to hit the target more often than he has done.”

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Comfortable on either side of a three-man attacking line, Benrahma can be suitably replaced by fellow winger Andriy Yarmolenko, who is certainly within a shout of starting a game soon having come off of the bench to score in the Hammers’ last two matches.

The Ukrainian celebrated both goals emotionally amid the ongoing conflict in his home country and will surely be in contention to play from the off.

It is absolutely vital that Moyes picks the right side today given the significance of the match. Having played their biggest game of the season so far on Thursday, the trip to Spurs is certainly the Hammers’ biggest league match of the campaign thus far, with the race for Europe still in their hands.

In other news: “Magical” £100k-p/w ace starts and Areola axed in 2 changes: West Ham predicted XI