Bruno Guimaraes is likely to leave Newcastle United in the summer amid interest from Manchester United, Liverpool and Barcelona.
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Guimaraes could leave NewcastleMagpies to decide on his future after Copa America Man Utd, Liverpool and Barca keen on signing the midfielder WHAT HAPPENED?
Guimaraes' future at St. James' Park has been a subject of intense speculation in recent months, with several top clubs across Europe vying for his signature. Now according to journalist , the Brazilian is expected to leave the club in the upcoming summer transfer window.
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Galetti also claimed that Premier League giants Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City along with Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona are among the clubs who are keen on signing the 26-year-old. The Magpies are expected to take a final call on the midfielder's future at the end of the 2024 Copa America.
DID YOU KNOW?
Last week, reported that the Newcastle star had purchased a new home worth £4m in Northumberland where he is set to move in with his wife and children.
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(C)Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR NEWCASTLE UNITED?
Eddie Howe's side, who are currently sixth in the Premier League, will be next seen in action on Wednesday against Crystal Palace in a league clash.
It's not the bells of Christmas ringing at Crystal Palace, it's alarm bells following four defeats in their last five Premier League matches.
The latest of those – a 2-1 defeat against Luton Town – happened to be the worst of the lot with the Eagles throwing away a one-goal lead as the Hatters launched a second-half fightback to secure only their second victory of the campaign.
Statistically, that was a game Palace should never have lost having registered eight shots on target to their opponent's two, as per Sofascore, while accumulating an expected goals (xG) of 1.67.
Nonetheless, the visitors were undone by their own wastefulness once more and although tasting defeat against Luton was a bitter pill to swallow, it wasn't the worst result to come from that game as star player Eberechi Eze was forced off the pitch through injury in the 49th minute.
Eberechi Eze
Roy Hodgson now needs to somehow find a replacement for his exceptional talent, who is crucial to everything that Palace do in the final third, ahead of their London derby fixture against West Ham United later today.
Eberechi Eze's statistics this season
With only two goals and one assist to his name this term, such statistics would normally imply a player hasn't had much of an impact on proceedings, but that isn't the case with Palace's superstar.
The 25-year-old, who was hailed by former manager Patrick Vieira as "different class", has still delivered on the Frenchman's praise by producing sensational attacking metrics.
Statistic
Value / Palace squad ranking
Key passes per game
2.2 / (1st)
Successful dribbles per game
3.2 / (1st)
Penalties won
1 / (1st)
Shots on target per game
1.2 / (1st)
Big chances created
2 / (1st)
All stats via Sofascore
Considering he reached ten goals and six assists in all competitions last term, it hasn't been the best start to the season from Eze's point of view, but the above table implies that he's still a dominant force and the one most likely to produce some magic in the final third.
The fact he's top across most attacking metrics in the Palace squad, including successful dribbles per game and big chances created, suggests Hodgson has the near-impossible task of replacing him, with Eze likely to be out for about four weeks.
That said, the injury to the Englishman could see him unleash talented teenager Matheus Franca against West Ham.
Why Franca should start against West Ham
Although several big clubs were previously interested in the Brazilian, it was the Eagles who pulled off the astute £26m capture of Franca from Brazilian side Flamengo in the summer.
Despite so much hype surrounding his name upon arrival, with journalist Antonio Mango describing him as "immense", the 19-year-old has been used sparingly by Hodgson this season having featured across just 31 minutes in the Premier League.
Flamengo midfielder Matheus Franca.
Talent scout Jacek Kulig even hailed him as "one of the most exciting teenagers in Brazil" two years ago after plundering 19 goals and supplying ten assists for Flamengo's underage sides.
With such quality being broadcast to the rest of the world, it was no surprise to see many people wax lyrical over his precocious talents.
This is evidenced by the fact he's outperformed Eze across most attacking metrics in the past year, including successful take-ons (3.09/2.86), progressive carries (4.64/2.43) and non-penalty goals (0.39/0.31), as per FBref.
Whilst the £40k per-week gem was strutting his stuff in a division with much less quality than the Premier League, he's still outperformed arguably Palace's best player, which suggests it could be time for him to unleash those attacking attributes in England's top flight.
After the offspinner made inroads into Australia’s line-up, the batsman marked his first Test at home with an unbeaten 61 to narrow the deficit to 59
The Report by Deivarayan Muthu06-Dec-2018 R Ashwin’s skill and Travis Head’s patience headlined another day of old-school Test cricket that left the Adelaide Test fascinatingly poised. After Ashwin’s delightful cocktail of drift, dip, and turn undid Australia’s line-up, Head, playing his first Test in the country, rallied with an unbeaten 61 on his home ground to narrow the deficit to 59 at stumps on day two.On their previous tour to Australia in December 2014, India had dropped Ashwin from the first Test, at this venue, and gambled on a more attacking option: a wristspinner in rookie Karn Sharma, who would wind up conceding 238 at a run rate of 4.85 across both innings. Four years later, in the first Test of the series, Ashwin showed his worth in an uninterrupted 22-over spell, where he plucked out three left-handed batsmen and conceded only 38 runs.Runs came in a trickle for Australia – their run rate of 2.17 was their second lowest in the first innings of a home Test since 1990 – but Head was simply immovable. He showed excellent judgment outside off, but latched on to anything that was loose. Case in point: when Ashwin dropped an offbreak short and wide outside off, Head ventured deep in the crease and crunched it to the point boundary. Later, when Ishant Sharma overpitched one outside off, Head bent his back knee and drove it through extra-cover. He reached his fifty off 103 balls in the 73rd over, when he punched a rank half-tracker from part-time offspinner M Vijay to deep cover.3:29
Unbelievable spell from Ashwin to support quicks – Agarkar
However, such looseners were few and far between. After Josh Hazlewood needed just one ball on day two to snaffle Mohammed Shami down the leg side and wrap up India for 250, Ishant struck with his third ball: a full inswinger that felled the off and middle stumps, and Finch for 0. While Ishant found sharp movement in the air, Finch aimed a booming drive and chopped on. Shaun Marsh and Peter Handscomb were just as culpable of playing loose shots, but there was no denying that the pressure from India was relentless.After the debutant opener Marcus Harris dashed down the track and drove Ashwin down the ground and through the covers for fours, the offspinner scrambled Harris’ judgment of line with late drift. After looping a very full ball outside off, he got it to swerve in and draw an inside edge, which ricocheted off the pad to Vijay at silly mid-off. At the other end, though, the seamers erred in their lengths by bowling short in the lead-up to lunch.Marsh then threw his wicket away in the first over after the break, when he went after a wide offbreak from Ashwin and chopped on for 2. Marsh’s Test scores since his 156 in the Ashes in January read: 40, 24, 26, 16, 7, 3, 2.1:42
All eyes on Head, Bumrah and Rahul for third day – Hodge
Ashwin then found just enough turn and bounce from around the wicket to have Usman Khawaja gloving behind for 28 off 125 balls and left the hosts at 4 for 87. Handscomb, in his first Test in Australia since he was dropped at the end of last year’s Adelaide Test against England, was more secure against Ashwin, often taking trips down the pitch or going right back to negotiate the short balls.His vigil, though, ended when Jasprit Bumrah pushed him back with a brace of short balls and then sucker-punched him with a full ball. And when Tim Paine was dismissed by Ishant for 5, Australia careened to 6 for 127. From an identical score, Cheteshwar Pujara had fashioned a great escape for India on day one. Head, too, threatens something similar, along with the tail, as the battle for the lead heats up.
In the 37th over of South Africa’s innings, Pakistan’s captain was caught on the broadcast stump mics making what seemed to be a racist comment against Andile Phehlukwayo
ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jan-2019Sarfraz Ahmed could be in serious trouble after he was caught on the broadcast stump mics making what seemed to be a racist comment against Andile Phehlukwayo.Halfway through the 37th over of South Africa’s tense chase in the second ODI in Durban, Phehlukwayo inside-edged a Shaheen Afridi delivery to deep fine leg for a single. He was on 50 at the time and as he ran off to the non-striker’s end, Sarfraz was caught clearly on the stump mics saying, in Urdu: “.Translated literally that is: “Hey black guy, where’s your mother sitting today? What [prayer] have you got her to say for you today?”On commentary, Mike Haysman asked Ramiz Raja, “What’s he saying there Ramiz?””Difficult really to translate that,” Ramiz replied. “It’s a big long sentence.”Phehlukwayo had enjoyed considerable fortune through the innings, not least when successfully reviewing an on-field lbw dismissal and a dropped catch in the over before this incident. Pakistan’s players had come hard at him early on, though in the post-match presentation he said, “it was good chat”.*”The ICC and the match officials have noted the alleged incident. They have started the necessary procedures to investigate the matter. We can only comment once we have received the results of the investigation. Any further clarification/updates have to go through the ICC,” said Mohammed Moosajee, the South Africa team manager.Any disciplinary action can be instigated by the match officials. Potentially, if action is to be taken, it will be up to the match officials to decide whether they view Sarfraz’s comments under the ICC code of conduct for player behaviour or the ICC’s anti-racism code. Article 2.13 of the regular code covers the use of insulting or obscene and offensive language used by players against another in the regular code of conduct. But it says: “This offence is not intended to cover any use of language that is likely to offend another person on the basis of their race, religion, gender, colour, descent, national or ethnic origin.”Such conduct is prohibited under the ICC’s Anti-Racism Code and must be dealt with according to the procedures set out therein.”In the Anti-Racism code, in place since October 2012, an offence is described as “any conduct (whether through the use of language, gestures or otherwise) which is likely to offend, insult, humiliate, intimidate, threaten, disparage or vilify any reasonable person in the position of a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee, Umpire Support Personnel or any other person (including a spectator) on the basis of their race, religion, culture, colour, descent, national or ethnic origin.”Phehlukwayo had a memorable day in any case, his unbeaten 69 part of an unbroken 127-run stand that steered South Africa home after they had wobbled to 80 for 5. And earlier in the day his 4 for 22, including the crucial wicket of Sarfraz, helped bowl Pakistan out for 203.*January 23, GMT 1300 The story was updated to include Mohammed Moosajee’s quote.
Mikel Arteta revealed that he has got in touch with Arsene Wenger to take title race advice from the legendary manager.
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Arteta has reached out to WengerGunners are contenders for the PL titleWenger's advice locked in 'hard drive'WHAT HAPPENED?
Arteta has turned to the wisdom of former boss Wenger as the Gunners gear up for a crucial phase in their title chase. Wenger, who led Arsenal to three league titles during his illustrious 22-year tenure, remains an iconic figure in the club's history and has shared some crucial tips with Arteta as they prepare for the final lap in the championship race.
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Arteta revealed about his consultations with Wenger and said: "I have spoken to him a few times. There were certain topics about how they won it and the later stages. He used to talk about that when I was a player. It is always there in the hard drive. For this time of the season, at the end, it is about finding a way to win the game. And that is it. You can do it in various ways when you look at how they won the titles and how they won certain games with very very, very close margins. He always talked about that, about the fine margins. And who is going to step up on the occasion to make it happen.”
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The nostalgia of the 2004 invincible league triumph at White Hart Lane two decades ago serves as a backdrop as it completed its 20th anniversary on Thursday. But Arteta remains focused on carving out a new chapter in Arsenal's history as they aim to keep pushing for the Premier League crown.
"There are moments, obviously, that are very important in our history and I am sure that a lot of players know about it," he said. "Certainly the staff and the ones that have been here long enough know about it. It’s about making our own history now."
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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT?
As Arsenal brace for the north London derby, Arteta faces the challenge of managing a congested fixture schedule. The Gunners' recent run of four games in two weeks, including defeats against Bayern Munich and Aston Villa, have tested their mettle. On the other hand, Tottenham have got a lengthy break to prepare for the match as they were last in action against Newcastle on 13 April. However, Arteta has no qualms about the demanding fixture schedule and views this as an opportunity for growth and development.
He said: "I love the fact we played four times and we had some great experiences in a very demanding week. We managed to have some really good results in the last two and obviously, that boosted the confidence and the belief of everybody. We are in a good place. We're going to be fully ready. We've had a bit of time as well to recover and prepare from the Chelsea game. I'm sure the team is going to be fully ready to go again on Sunday."
Liverpool are interested in sealing the signing of an exciting player club who is being tracked by many top clubs, according to a fresh transfer rumour.
Liverpool's upcoming transfer business
The Reds know that new additions will be available in the January transfer window, and given some of the injuries facing them at the moment, Jurgen Klopp could look to bring in new faces. Alisson and Diogo Jota are currently sidelined, but will hopefully be back in the relatively near future, however, Joel Matip has cruelly suffered an ACL injury, and likely won't feature again this season, acting as a big blow to Liverpool's Premier League title hopes.
For that reason, a new centre-back could be at the top of Klopp's shopping list, with Goncalo Inacio a player who has been linked with Liverpool numerous times in the recent past. The Sporting CP ace is a central defender who can also do a job at left-back, which would cover two key positions, especially with Andy Robertson another current absentee.
A defensive midfielder was arguably the priority before Matip's setback, with Alexis Mac Allister not always looking completely at home in that role this season, but focus must surely now turn to snapping up a central defender. That isn't the only area of the pitch where the Reds could look to strengthen, however, and a new report suggests that an attacking starlet could be on their radar.
Liverpool want to sign Kyanno Silva
According to an update from SoccerNews [via Sport Witness], Liverpool are interested in signing promising Benfica teenager Kyanno Silva. The Merseysiders "hope to sign" the 18-year-old from the Portuguese, and a bargain transfer for FSG could be on the cards.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
"Other foreign top clubs" are also in the mix to snap up the Dutchman, but Benfica would "like to let him go" to Anfield, as long as they receive a cheap fee of "£200k". That being said, a contract extension is "also not yet out of the question", with the Liverpool transfer target's current deal expiring at the end of this season.
Silva is certainly a long way from being a household name, so Reds supporters could be forgiven for not knowing much about him if anything at all, but he could be an important part of the long-term rebuild at Anfield.
The Reds target has won a combined five caps at international level for the Netherlands' Under-19s and Under-18s – three for the former and two for the latter – and he is predominantly a right-sided attacking player, so he could even be looked at as someone who can eventually fill the void that will be left by Mohamed Salah.
The "special" Liverpool teen who is worth even more than Quansah to Klopp
Klopp could find the most exciting member of Liverpool’s academy fold in this rising star.
ByAngus Sinclair Dec 8, 2023
Planning for the future is always vital at Liverpool, ensuring the squad doesn't age together with no young prospects to replace them over time, and Silva, who doesn't have a weak foot, could be exactly that, perhaps being loaned out to begin with, in order to continue developing as a player.
More senior players are also seemingly needed in January and next summer, but the Reds striking a deal for the Benfica youngster could be exciting in its own right.
Alisha Lehmann has impressed herself after a successful gaming session that saw her claim a Victory Royale triumph on Fortnite.
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Enjoying break between WSL fixturesTaken herself into a virtual worldClaimed notable No.1 spotGettyWHAT HAPPENED?
The Aston Villa star is a big gaming fan, with images and videos often shared on her various social media accounts of virtual action being taken in – with boyfriend Douglas Luiz often dragged along for the ride as two competitive characters battle for household bragging rights.
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Lehmann appears to have the upper hand there at present, with her latest session resulting in Fortnite success being savoured. There is no indication as to how many rival players the 25-year-old was up against, but she did come out on top.
WHAT LEHMANN SAID
The Swiss forward clearly was not expecting to claim the No.1 spot, as she was left delivering a “can’t believe it” message to her international team-mate Smilla Vallotto and brother Marco Lehmann.
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WHAT NEXT?
Lehmann has been filling her time between WSL fixtures at Aston Villa, with their 2023-24 campaign drawing to a close. They have just three more fixtures left to take in this season, with the first of those set to see West Ham pay a visit to the West Midlands on Sunday.
Jalaj Saxena, Avesh Khan, Ricky Bhui and Mayank Markande have earned call-ups for the first game against England Lions, which begins on February 7
ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jan-2019Ankit Bawne will lead India A in their first four-day game against England Lions, which is scheduled to begin on February 7 in Wayanad. Bawne led India in the fourth unofficial ODI against Lions in Ajinkya Rahane’s absence on Tuesday. KL Rahul finds a place in the squad, as does long-time domestic performer Jalaj Saxena, who gets into an India A squad for the first time since 2013. The Kerala allrounder averages 44.00 with the bat and 20.41 with the ball over his last two first-class seasons, with 73 wickets in 17 matches.Gujarat’s Priyank Panchal (898 runs in nine matches) and Bengal’s Abhimanyu Easwaran (861 runs in six matches) are the two openers besides Rahul, and are the batsmen in the squad with most runs in the ongoing Ranji season.Other players rewarded for their Ranji form are Andhra’s Ricky Bhui (775 runs in eight matches), Madhya Pradesh fast bowler Avesh Khan (35 wickets in seven matches), and Punjab legspinner Mayank Markande (29 wickets in six matches). This is the first India A call-up for all three of them.Karun Nair, who captained India A in their last red-ball series in New Zealand, has been dropped from the squad, as have his Karnataka team-mates R Samarth and K Gowtham, who were among the top performers on that tour. The trio endured poor bouts of form after returning to the Ranji Trophy. Other notable names not in the squad are Vijay Shankar and Shubman Gill, who are currently with India’s ODI squad in New Zealand.India A squad for first four-day game: Ankit Bawne (capt), KL Rahul, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Priyank Panchal, Ricky Bhui, Siddhesh Lad, KS Bharat (wk), Jalaj Saxena, Shahbaz Nadeem, Mayank Markande, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, Avesh Khan, Varun Aaron
It's now been reported that West Ham could lose a "big voice" in the January transfer window as "many clubs" circle to sign him next month.
Players who could leave West Ham in 2024
The Hammers could see a wave of figureheads depart east London for nothing in the summer of 2024, including manager David Moyes.
Moyes is unlikely to be offered a new West Ham contract, according to reports, while goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski, defender Ben Johnson, young star Divin Mubama, midfielder Conor Coventry, prospect Joseph Anang, left-back Aaron Cresswell, and veteran centre-back Angelo Ogbonna could also leave upon the expiry of their deals.
West Ham favourites to sign forward with £25m transfer "there to be done"
Co-chairman David Sullivan and transfer chief Tim Steidten are reportedly planning targets ahead of January.
ByEmilio Galantini Dec 9, 2023
Star regular Tomas Soucek is officially on that list as well, but some reports suggest he's actually put pen to paper on a new long-term deal in secret. Indeed, Soucek has signed a new West Ham deal till 2027 which is yet to be formally announced (Daily Mail).
While the Czech Republic international won't be going anywhere, it would seem, the same cannot be said for out-of-favour defender Thilo Kehrer.
The German, who put pen to paper on a move to West Ham from PSG in the summer of 2022, has barely featured under Moyes this season.
This is despite West Ham's manager previously revealing Kehrer is actually a "big voice" in the Irons dressing room, not to mention a real personality who was "stepping up" behind-the-scenes at one point.
Thilo Kehrer
"Amazingly, I already see Thilo Kehrer stepping up in the dressing room, big personality, big voice," said Moyes on Kehrer last year (via The Standard).
"I said about players taking time to adapt, and it may sound like a manager’s excuse, but I actually think he has adapted really well.
“He has had a couple of moments but you would have to say he has come in and played well and showed in the dressing room he has a voice and trying to help the players.”
Playing just 18 Premier League minutes over 23/24 so far, it appears Moyes' opinion of the defender has changed since then.
Kehrer, for his part, is now said to be eyeing up an exit from the London Stadium as we approach January.
Kehrer now eyeing up West Ham exit
According to Sky Sports Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg, writing via X, Kehrer is now open to leaving West Ham as his agents even start to sound out the market for potential landing spots.
The 27-year-old is apparently being chased by "many clubs", who have already made an approach to sign him.
IIt appears Kehrer, after just over one and a half seasons in claret and blue, could now end up departing in what would arguably go down as another failed transfer.
Both Sri Lanka captain Karunaratne and South Africa captain du Plessis shower the Durban hero with effusive praise
ESPNcricinfo staff16-Feb-20190:57
First Lara, then Perera – all the records Sri lanka broke to beat South Africa
“I’m a little tired now, I don’t know what to say.”But for 309 minutes, Kusal Perera knew exactly what to do. Sri Lanka were rank underdogs in this fight. They were pummeled 2-0 in Australia, never even getting close to putting up a total of 250. Their captain was sacked. Their team stripped for parts. Rookies few had heard off were put on the plane to South Africa and now, after four days of outrageous cricket in Durban, they have emerged the victors, chasing down 304 with one wicket to spare.And it was all down to the man who didn’t know what to say.”Especially great effort as a team,” Perera finally managed. “Especially lower-order batsmen, they gave me good support. And because of that I believed in myself.”I did something … I did my part. But we won as a team. The partnerships in the whole innings were great – that’s why we were able to chase 304. You can’t just mention one person or partnership. Even if you scored one run, that counted to the win. All XI of us had to bat. It’s the best Test I’ve played for Sri Lanka.
In these tracks, if you’re not willing to wear balls on the body, you might as well not be batting
Perera was breathtaking with bat in hand. He barely flapped an eyelid when Sri Lanka lost their ninth man with the target still 78 runs away. He defended with unreal calm. ran like there were ants in his pants, took body blows – 150kph deliveries kept thudding into him – and brushed them off like they were mosquito bites.”In places like these [South Africa], it’s never going to be easy, like [it is] in Sri Lanka. These bowlers are all top five in the world. You never know what kinds of balls they are going to send at you. They don’t give you any room, and they have so much experience. There were very few loose balls.”In these couple of matches, I think I’ve copped six or seven blows to the head. In these tracks, if you’re not willing to wear balls on the body, you might as well not be batting. I don’t know how many times I got hit – honestly I’ve lost count. But you can’t think about those things while you are batting. In Sri Lanka the fastest you get is 130-140kph. Here you get balls that are 150kph. When you come to a country like this, if someone tells you you can bat without getting hit, that’s a lie. We have to be smart about it. That happened to me. That’s what cricket is about.”Highest tenth-wicket partnerships in successful chases•ESPNcricinfo LtdAt the other end, the most No. 11 of No. 11s, Vishwa Fernando hung on. He made only six runs – four of those from overthrows. There were five extras in that time as well. But the rest of the 67 that Sri Lanka needed to record only their second Test win in South Africa came off Perera’s magic bat. And it spared no one.Dale Steyn was muscled for six over midwicket. Multiple times. One of the world’s greatest fast bowlers was reduced to shaking his head and scratching his chin. Faf du Plessis took the new ball hoping that would help them take the wicket but Perera farmed the strike so beautifully that Fernando faced only seven deliveries in this period.”I didn’t even look at the scoreboard when Vishwa came in and we had a lot of runs to get. I just tried to play it over by over and get us close, little by little. Vishwa told me: “I’ll hit the ball with my body, if nothing else. You do what you can, Kusal .” I took a lot of strength from that. Without any fear I took the single and gave the strike to him. He did a huge job. If he had got out, there wouldn’t have been a point, because we would ahve been all out. I don’t know how many balls he faced. Those are valuable, valuable balls. What he faced was worth more than my runs.”
Vishwa told me: “I’ll hit the ball with my body, if nothing else. You do what you can, Kusal .” I took a lot of strength from that
Eventually, in the 86th over, Perera glided a short and wide delivery to the third-man boundary and almost as soon as he made contact he let out a cathartic scream, holding his hands aloft and savouring that “special” feeling.”That was really awesome,” newly appointed captain Dimuth Karunaratne said. “We knew coming into this game that we had a chance. Earlier in 2012, we won a match here in Durban. We had a tough series in Australia but we learnt lots of things so I thought the boys will give their best in South Africa.”We lost lots of matches last few years. Even the Sri Lankan fans, who all are looking to see when we were going to win. So I think it’s a proud moment for us as a team, as a captain, and as a country as well. Winning in South Africa is a real proud moment.”It showed in the Sri Lankan dressing room, which flew into chaos upon seeing the winning shot. Coach Chandika Hathurusingha was leaping about, punching the air. The other players around him were on their seats, roaring in delight. Each of them went over to get a piece of their match-winner, so much so that Perera didn’t even have time to collect a stump as a souvenir. Someone else had to do it for him.Kusal Perera and Vishwa Fernando celebrate a sensational Sri Lanka win•Getty ImagesIn December 2015, Perera went through the ordeal of a false positive drug test. He faced a four-year ban from cricket, but Sri Lanka Cricket helped him fight the charge and eventually win the case in court. In December 2016, he toured South Africa for the first time but with the team in flux, he was made to bat out of position at No. 3 and discarded after one Test. Perera finally came back to the Test side in June 2018 and now stands as a hero. There might perhaps be only one other man who knows how he feels right now. Brian Lara, who too made an epic unbeaten 153 to win a see-sawing Test match against superior opposition in the company of a No. 11 batsman.No wonder that even the opposition captain couldn’t hold back his praise. “Perera was obviously unbelievable,” du Plessis said. “To get 160-170 out of that score will take a Superman effort. So he deserves all the accolades that come to him after this game.”I thought 300 was enough on this wicket. I’d be lying if there wasn’t emotions going through me on the inside. Difficult for a captain to tactically… you want to try and protect the lead and then you want to bowl at the tail-ender and he played that beautifully. Whatever we tried, we brought the field up, he still managed to get a one away or a boundary away. Just kept knocking away every over. Towards the end, we got a few balls at the tail-ender but unfortunately there were a few plays an misses. Would’ve been nice if there’d been a nick.”