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Sport’s failings laid bare in 317-page document, including 44 recommendations to improve equity

Andrew Miller26-Jun-2023The leadership of the ECB has issued an unreserved apology to “anyone who has ever been excluded from cricket or made to feel like they don’t belong”, and has promised to “use this moment to reset cricket”, in the wake of the hard-hitting findings of the long-awaited Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) report, published on Tuesday.The 317-page report, titled “Holding Up A Mirror To Cricket”, features evidence from more than 4000 people, including players, coaches, administrators and fans, and drills deep into the sport’s historical structural inequalities – with special emphasis on its post-colonial heritage – to reveal a pattern of deep-rooted discrimination within the game, in particular on grounds of race, class and gender.The commission was established in March 2021, in response to the murder of George Floyd in police custody in the USA and the Black Lives Matter movement, which prompted numerous claims of institutional racism within English cricket, not least Azeem Rafiq’s revelations about his treatment at Yorkshire, which culminated in his emotional testimony before a Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) select commitee in November that year.”For many involved in the sport (including the ECB) the revelations and recommendations of this report will make for uncomfortable reading,” Cindy Butts, the commission’s chair, writes in her foreword to the report. And while she commends the current ECB management for being “brave enough” to open up the sport to such forensic independent scrutiny, she also adds that previous initiatives – not least the ECB’s “Clean Bowl Racism” campaign, launched in 1999 – had done little to address the “sirens of concern”.A total of 44 recommendations have been outlined in the report, the first of which is the ECB’s public apology for its previous failures – as issued by Richard Thompson, the chair – which is described by the commissioners as an “essential first step … to help to rebuild trust and signal a clear future direction”.”On behalf of the ECB and wider leadership of the game, I apologise unreservedly to anyone who has ever been excluded from cricket or made to feel like they don’t belong,” Thompson said in a statement. “Cricket should be a game for everyone, and we know that this has not always been the case. Powerful conclusions within the report also highlight that for too long women and Black people were neglected. We are truly sorry for this.The ICEC commissioners (L-R): Michelle Moore, Sir Brendan Barber, Cindy Butts (chair), Dr Michael Collins and Zafar Ansari•ICEC”This report makes clear that historic structures and systems have failed to prevent discrimination, and highlights the pain and exclusion this has caused. I am determined that this wake-up call for cricket in England and Wales should not be wasted. We will use this moment to demonstrate that it is a game for all and we have a duty to put this right for current and future generations.”In an open letter to Butts, Thompson went on to thank the commission’s five-person secretariat – which also includes the England cricketer-turned-barrister Zafar Ansari – for their “rigour” and for holding up an “unfiltered mirror to all cricket in England and Wales”.”I am determined that this wake-up call for cricket … must not be wasted,” Thompson added. “We will use this moment to reset cricket. This cannot and will not be a quick fix – we must take the time to put in place meaningful structural reforms. As your report rightly points out, cricket has been here before. This time our response will be different. Our response must be wide-ranging and long-term.”The next step of the ECB’s response will be a three-month period of consideration, with the ICEC’s 44 recommendations – many of which are multi-faceted and contain sub-recommendations – due to be discussed at both the professional and recreational levels of the game.This consultation process will be led by Clare Connor, the ECB’s deputy chief executive, with the support of a sub-group of the ECB board including Baroness Zahida Manzoor, Pete Ackerley, Ebony Rainford-Brent, Sir Ron Kalifa, Richard Thompson and Richard Gould.The ECB acknowledged in its statement that some reforms can be “implemented swiftly”, and that others are achievable under the current framework of cricket but will require “time and investment over the coming months and years”.Others, however – perhaps most significantly the call for women’s cricketers to achieve equal pay at domestic level by 2029 and at international level by 2030 – will require “fundamental, longer-term changes to cricket in England and Wales, and its funding model”.The report also recommends the establishment of a new independent regulatory body, in light of persistent criticism of the sport’s existing disciplinary processes – such as those raised at the select committee hearings, and at the subsequent Cricket Discipline Commission hearing into Yorkshire’s dressing-room culture, the sanctions for which are due to be revealed later on Tuesday.”The ECB’s dual roles of promoter and regulator have the potential to give rise to conflicts of interest,” the report states. “The phrase ‘marking your own homework’ was often used in evidence to us.”Separately, Marylebone Cricket Club – for centuries the most powerful body in world cricket and still considered, through the grandeur of Lord’s, to be the game’s spiritual home – comes in for significant criticism.The report recommends that the venue’s hosting of annual fixtures between Eton and Harrow, and Oxford and Cambridge, should be ended after 2023, and replaced with a national finals’ days for state school Under-15 competitions for boys and girls, and a similar event for men’s and women’s university teams. The commission also expressed “alarm” that the England’s women had never yet played a Test at Lord’s, adding: “The ‘home of cricket’ is still a home principally for men.”Gould, the ECB’s chief executive, reiterated that work was already underway to make English cricket more inclusive, including an increase in funding for the African-Caribbean Engagement Programme for young Black cricketers and increased provision of cricket in state schools, and was grateful for the report’s assessment that “green shoots of progress” are already visible. However, he also acknowledged that the governing body “needs to go further and faster in our efforts”.”Making cricket more inclusive and reflective of the communities it serves is my number one priority,” Gould said. “This cannot and will not be a quick fix. We are committed to taking the time to work with everyone in the sport, and especially with leaders of cricket’s clubs and institutions, to put in place reforms that are wide-ranging, long-term and meaningful. We should view this as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to restore trust in the game we love.”

Former Ajax player Joost van Aken has opened up on his struggles with painkillers after a brutal injury which forced him to retire at 30.

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Van Aken reveals X-rated reaction to injuryDutchman was forced to retire from football aged 30Spoke about struggles with painkillersFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Van Aken, most prominently known for his stints at Eredivisie outfit Heerenveen and Championship side Sheffield Wednesday, opened up on his injury hell and provided an X-rated reaction while describing how he felt upon finding out that a part of his ankle bone was missing.

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Van Aken was interviewed by , where the former Ajax youngster explained what went through his mind when he found out that a part of his ankle bone was missing while he was being operated on as a Heerenveen player in 2016.

He started by recollecting what the surgeon told him at the time: "Look! You’ve had an injection here. There’s a hole in the inside of your foot, it’s hollowed out. There’s a piece of bone missing here."

Van Aken then reflected: "When I saw that, I thought: 'I’m never going to do that again.' I had taken a cortisone injection so I could play. Now I think: 'What do you mean? What the f*ck?' It wasn’t the Champions League final, but an away match against ADO Den Haag.

"I ate [painkillers] like M&Ms. That can never be good, but I have built up a reasonable system in my body that means I no longer suffer from a pill here or there. I regularly had to stick a finger down my throat to get rid of that nasty feeling. My stools also became less than they should be."

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The use of painkillers in football has become a growing concern. While common drugs like Ibuprofen and Diclofenac are still legal, their frequent use can lead to serious long-term health issues, including kidney, stomach, and intestinal problems. Many players, feeling the pressure to perform, have admitted to using painkillers just to get through matches, despite the risk of causing lasting damage. However, there have been measures undertaken to ensure the health of the players remain the priority first and foremost, as evidenced by World Anti Doping Agency's banning of Tramadol.

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Several prominent players have admitted that they became dependent or were close to becoming dependent on painkillers during their playing careers. Earlier this year, former Belgian international Jan Vertonghen, who spent the majority of his career at Tottenham Hotspur, revealed that he retired out of fear that he would have to take painkillers every single day. Former Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner revealed that he became reliant on painkillers to the point where he "couldn't train without them" following a car crash in 2009, ultimately leading to a premature retirement at just 31. Meanwhile, ex-Liverpool goalkeeper Chris Kirkland opened up about his decade-long addiction to Tramadol, describing it as the equivalent of "six shots of heroin a day." Reflecting on his recovery, Kirkland acknowledged that consuming such high doses could have easily cost him his life.

He has been named Australia’s T20I captain for South Africa tour, and could also be in the running for the ODI job full time

Andrew McGlashan09-Aug-20232:25

George Bailey: Ideal world would have two captains, not three

Mitchell Marsh, Australia captain. It’s a phrase that would have appeared very unlikely a couple of years ago, but now the allrounder is preparing to lead the team in the T20I series in South Africa. He might also be a frontrunner for the role permanently heading into next year’s T20 World Cup, and perhaps for both white-ball jobs before long.Marsh is the first to admit that he made mistakes earlier in his career, but has reflected on his pride at not giving up in his ambitions of making a sustained success of international cricket, which last month included a remarkable return to the Test side with a century at Headingley.He could now start the home summer as the favourite for the No. 6 role ahead of his close friend Cameron Green, but the more immediate focus for him will be a first crack at international captaincy, and then playing a key role in the ODI World Cup in India. Marsh may also stand-in for Pat Cummins during the ODIs in South Africa, with the regular captain recovering from a fractured wrist.Related

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“It’s pretty crazy how it all works out,” Marsh told SEN radio after being confirmed as Aaron Finch’s replacement as T20I captain. “Very proud moment. Probably not something I’d ever thought I would do, but really looking forward to the opportunity of going to South Africa.”Marsh, who was an Australia Under-19 captain, previously relinquished the role at Perth Scorchers when he felt he couldn’t give it his full focus as he tried to return to national colours, and last year largely ruled himself out of the ODI job after Finch’s retirement – although national selector George Bailey believed that was Marsh not wanting the headlines – but nearly 12 months on, he is now much more secure of his standing.”Guess I’m very proud that I’ve stuck at it, and been through a little bit of adversity through my career – through my own fault, mind you – but [it’s] nice to be recognised in our group as a leader,” he added. “Think anyone who works hard and is driven to succeed in whatever field they are in, and they come up short, it can be bloody hard to be honest with you, and I’m really proud of the fact I’ve never really given up.Mitchell Marsh made a remarkable return to the Test side with a century at Headingley•Getty Images”I’ve also [been] through those lessons learnt to enjoy every part of my life – the ups and downs – and try to take a lot of learnings from my failures, and understand that whatever you do in life – whether it’s cricket, sport, [or] business – you are going to fail, and it’s [about] how you deal with those failures. Hopefully that will help me with my leadership, and [in] trying to win a few games for Australia.”Marsh believes T20 cricket is the toughest format to captain, given the game can swing on very small margins, but he is looking forward to the challenge in South Africa. Although his appointment is only for that tour, he is now strongly placed to take the job full time and will a leading candidate to add the ODI format as well after this year’s World Cup, with Bailey saying a single white-ball captain would be the preference.”It’s certainly the hardest [format],” Marsh said. “I’ve gave up captaining the Scorchers… that was mainly around [when] I was really striving to play for Australia, and I didn’t feel like I could give it everything. It’s really hard to balance that. You’ve got to put a lot of time into getting things right tactically, but I’m really looking forward to the challenge and will have plenty of good people around me to help. I’ll lean on others, which has been a really important learning for me as a leader.”

“I probably spent a fair chunk of my red-ball career trying to bat like Steven Smith, Marnus [Labuschagne], Usman Khawaja – those guys that can bat for six hours – but ultimately that’s not who I am”Mitchell Marsh reflects on his Test career before his comeback in England

Staying fit for extended periods has previously been one of Marsh’s challenges. He opted to undergo ankle surgery last year which ruled him out of the BBL, and that is an issue which will need to be continually managed. But getting through three consecutive Ashes Tests was a big tick for him, albeit he did pull up sore at Old Trafford.”I’ll have to keep looking after myself and keep working with the great staff at Cricket Australia and the WACA, and make sure I can stay on the park as much as I can,” he said.Reflecting on how his Test career was revived in England, when he replaced the injured Green at Headingley, he added: “I probably spent a fair chunk of my red-ball career trying to bat like Steven Smith, Marnus [Labuschagne], Usman Khawaja – those guys that can bat for six hours – but ultimately that’s not who I am; that’s not me as a cricketer.”I don’t have the best defence, but I know when I’m in a really good frame of mind mentally and in an attacking frame of mind, that I can defend well and keep good balls out. Outside of that, I really want to play the way I want to play.”

The defending champions started their season successfully with Lance Morris also taking four wickets

AAP24-Sep-2023Josh Philippe carried his outstanding domestic one-day form from last season into a new campaign as he starred in Western Australia’s four-wicket win over Queensland in Brisbane.The player of the 2022-23 tournament, the 26-year-old Phillipe, who made three ODI and 10 T20I appearances for Australia in 2021, scored a match-high 90 off 88 balls at Allan Border Field.WA reached their target of 239 with 9.4 overs to spare as they made a successful start to their bid for a third straight one-day domestic cup, despite having six players away on international duty and others on the injury list, but narrow missed the bonus point when Cooper Connolly and Nick Hobson fell in consecutive balls at the end of the 40th over.They lost opener D’Arcy Short for a first-ball duck and Cameron Bancroft for 10, but Philippe’s third-wicket stand of 90 off 80 balls with Sam Whiteman (62 off 52) took the game away from Queensland.Philippe, who scored a century for Australia A against their New Zealand counterparts in a first-class game earlier this month, and totaled 40 runs across three one-day games, struck 10 fours and a six.A late flurry of fours from Perth Scorchrers’ 2022-23 BBL final hero Connolly and a steady hand from captain Ashton Turner carried them to the verge of victory.Queensland paid the price for not turning several starts into more substantial scores as they were dismissed for 238 with 22 balls remaining.Four of their top seven scored at least 36 and the other three got to double figures, but no one made more than Ben McDermott’s 52 off 69 balls. They were well placed at 102 for 1 in the 20th over, but lost 3-19.Paceman Lance Morris was expensive and wayward early but made a successful return from a back issue, as he smashed through the bottom half of the order, with Queensland losing 5 for 40.Australian T20I and ODI representative McDermott, who has returned to Queensland from Tasmania, was run out backing up too far after bowler AJ Tye deflected a Matt Renshaw straight drive on to the stumps.Max Bryant, Michael Neser and Sam Heazlett were the other batters who perished after being well set.Philippe provided the spark at the start of the WA chase, but was happy to play second fiddle when Whiteman tore into the Queensland bowlers.Whiteman, who has returned from a stint with English county Northamptonshire, took 14 off four balls from Neser, including a ramp for six over fine leg before he switched to around the wicket and got him to chop the ball onto his stumps.

Martin Odegaard is pursuing legal action against two publications after they published details of his home, and attempted to photograph his wedding.

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Arsenal captain contends breach of ECHRBoth publications deny wrongdoingOdegaard's security manager accused of threatening journalistsFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

The Arsenal star is taking legal action against weekly magazine Se og Hør, and Dagbladet, a daily newspaper. According to another Norwegian media outlet, VG, Odegaard's English lawyer has announced a lawsuit following reports about his new home in the UK. The suit alleges a violation of the Arsenal star's right to privacy, which is protected by the European Convention on Human Rights. Odegaard's representatives have demanded the articles be taken down.

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The news comes after another run-in between Odegaard and journalists representing the two publications. Reporters were physically removed from the site of Odegaard's wedding this past Saturday. Dagbladet's editor-in-chief Frode Hansen says his staff were attacked by a "private person", believed to be Geir Ellefsen the security manager for the event, while conducting their work in a public place.

WHAT WAS SAID

Odegaard's lawyer Tim Lowles said in a letter to Se og Hør's editor Niklas Kokkin-Thoresen: "The article describes the location of our client’s recently purchased family home and includes photographs of itt."

Kokkin-Thoresen told VG: “I take this with stoic calm.

“The demand will not be complied with, as this is of great public interest and we have not identified where the home is.

“Here we are on safe editorial ground and this is of course not a violation of privacy.”

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AFPWHAT NEXT FOR ODEGAARD?

This could start an ugly and public war between Norway's media and one of the country's biggest stars. How this might affect Odegaard's performance on the pitch remains to be seen.

Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate has decided on his next destination if contract talks with the Reds do no porgress in the next one year. The French defender has entered the final 12 months of his deal and negotiation over a possible extension has currently stalled. Konate could follow in the footsteps of Trent Alexander-Arnold and move to Madrid for free next summer.

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Konate's next destination revealedContract talks with Liverpool stalledKonate has one year left in his current dealFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

According to , Konate reportedly held contract talks with the Premier League champions in recent weeks but the discussions did not lead to any progress. The central defender has entered the final 12 months of his current contract and could exit Anfield for free in the summer of 2026.

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The report adds that Spanish giants Real Madrid are Konate's preferred destination if he ends up becoming a free agent at the end of the 2025-26 campaign. For now, Los Blancos do not need a new centre back following the signing of Dean Huijsen from Bournemouth but the club could chase Konate next year and sign him for free.

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The 26-year-old defender also has offers from several Saudi Pro League clubs, however, he is unlikely to sign for a Middle Eastern club as he does not want to exit Europe yet.

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The Reds players will reconvene on Monday for pre-season training before they play their first friendly match on July 13 against Preston at Deepdale.

The Queensland captain will miss the game against Victoria with an eye on the Test summer which starts in December

AAP12-Oct-2023Usman Khawaja has been rested for Queensland’s next Sheffield Shield fixture as Cricket Australia’s workload management spreads to include batters ahead of the international summer.The Queensland captain is fit and healthy, but on Saturday he will watch his side’s clash with Victoria in Mackay from his home in Brisbane.Queensland still have four Shield games before the first Test of the summer against Pakistan, beginning in Perth on December 14.Related

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Australia, currently competing in the ODI World Cup in India, will play a five-game T20 series against the hosts, before returning home for a five-Test summer.They will also play two Tests in New Zealand in February and March, and contest T20 series alongside those five-day clashes.AAP understands all Australian squad members will be subject to the load management policy – which had not been flagged before Khawaja’s omission on Thursday – on a case-by-case basis.How to best manage bowlers’ workloads has long been a divisive topic, with Australian captain Pat Cummins dismissing the notion of rotation in India and hopeful his battery of quicks will play every World Cup game if fit.The 36-year-old Khawaja has a relatively light schedule compared with some of his Test team-mates who frequent the world T20 circuit, but he will play for the Brisbane Heat in the BBL.His omission is a nod to how crowded the modern-day cricketer’s calendar has become.”Ideally you want your captain and best player to be there for every game, but we all know that, barring injury, he will be one of the first bats picked for the Pakistan series, so we understand the rationale behind the decision-making process,” Queensland coach Wade Seccombe said.”Uzzie is philosophical about it. He’d be happy to play, but he will also benefit from a more measured build-up ahead of another big international schedule for Australia.”He’s hitting them well, so we shouldn’t be too concerned on that front.”In-form wicketkeeper Jimmy Peirson will captain in Khawaja’s absence, while Gold Coast product Ben McDermott is poised for a Shield return after his off-season move from Tasmania.

More Kookaburra ball trials and extension of hybrid pitches among changes for county season

Andrew Miller23-Nov-2023The ECB has defended the concept of “Super September” after unveiling the men’s and women’s domestic fixtures calendar for 2024, with five domestic competitions set to be decided in the final month of the season, alongside a possible 15 days of men’s international cricket.Neil Snowball, managing director of Competitions and Major Events, conceded that the ECB had “had our hand forced” in avoiding high-profile scheduling clashes in 2024, given the ICC’s staging of the Men’s T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and the USA between June 4-30, and the knock-on effect on England’s major-match schedule for their home season – with a pair of three-Test series against West Indies and Sri Lanka, plus eight white-ball fixtures against Australia, all taking place in the final 11 weeks of the season, from July 11 to September 29.On the domestic front, however, Snowball believes that the prospect of the Vitality Blast and Metrobank One-Day Cup finals taking place on consecutive weekends in mid-September, alongside the Charlotte Edwards Cup final, the revamped Disability Premier League final, and the likely climax of the County Championship title race, offers a “natural culmination of the season”.”With three men’s county domestic competitions, one of the women’s and the DPL, in terms of a mix of conclusions of titles, I think that’s quite exciting,” Snowball said. “At the same time, we’ll have the back end of the Sri Lanka Test series and the Australia men’s white-ball series. There’s a lot to love about that. Yes, it’s a lot of cricket. But I think that is a lot to look forward to.”Championship returns to August, Blast to late weekOther significant changes to the fixture list include a return of Championship cricket to the prime month of August, with the new season of the Hundred (the fixtures for which have yet to be announced) moved back a week into July. Meanwhile, the vast majority of next year’s Vitality Blast fixtures – 122 of 126 group-stages matches – will be played on Thursday nights, Friday nights and at weekends, including 22 double headers alongside the Charlotte Edwards Cup.To mitigate against the prospect of autumnal weather at the season’s climax, the ECB has allocated a reserve day for each of the knock-out matches across the men’s and women’s competitions – and if there’s still no prospect of a result in the final, then the title will be shared, instead of being decided on a bowl-out, as would have been the case in recent seasons.Not everyone on the county circuit will be convinced by the schedule’s merits, however. Speaking after Surrey’s successful defence of their Championship title this season, director of cricket Alec Stewart derided Super September as “anything but”, and urged the ECB to be “more respectful to the county game”.Snowball acknowledged Stewart’s criticism. “Surrey may end up in the quarter-finals and finals of the Blast, and in the final of the One-Day Cup and be pushing for the title, that’s going to be a very busy September,” he said. “I wouldn’t call it unlucky, but the consequence of being really good is you could be in all three, then that is a hell of a schedule. I agree. But I would have thought adrenaline would take them through that.”Kookaburra trial extended to four matchesAfter two rounds of University fixtures in March, the County Championship will launch the season proper on April 5, with Surrey opening their title defence against Lancashire at Old Trafford, while Durham mark their return to the top flight for the first time in eight years by hosting Hampshire at Chester-le-Street. Worcestershire, the other promoted team, will face Midlands rivals Warwickshire at Edgbaston.That opening round of games could yet be contested using the Kookaburra ball, with the ECB confirming that the two-match trial period utilised during the 2023 season would be extended to four matches in 2024, in two blocks of two towards the beginning and end of the season, but avoiding the season’s climax as well as the middle rounds of games in late April and May when each county is guaranteed a week off.The use of the Kookaburra – the favoured ball for most overseas Test cricket – was recommended by Andrew Strauss’s High Performance Review for 2023, in the wake of England’s disastrous Ashes campaign. Though it was dismissed by Surrey’s head coach Gareth Batty as a “knee-jerk reaction”, it led to a 10% increase in the amount of overs bowled by spinners, according to Mo Bobat, the ECB’s outgoing performance director.”Most coaches would say that it helped to develop skills for bowlers, as the ball probably does less than a Dukes ball,” Alan Fordham, the ECB’s operations manager, added. “Dukes gives us a competitive advantage in our home internationals, so this isn’t a takeover by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s a chance to give players an opportunity to use the Kookaburra in matches in this country, rather than if they are selected for international duty for the first time.”Hybrid pitches permitted for ChampionshipHybrid pitches will also be permitted for the first time in Championship cricket, on a one-year trial basis (having previously been permitted for white-ball matches only), in a bid to assist county groundsmen in pitch preparation and maintenance.”In multiday cricket, you want pitches to deteriorate and that’s exactly what hybrid pitches are setting out not to do,” Fordham added. “But this is an opportunity to embrace technology, and respond to some of the pressures that the game is under, by playing more fixtures at these grounds during the season.”There would be no limits imposed on how many hybrid pitches any given club would be permitted to prepare per season, Fordham added.”If a county and their head grounds-manager deem that is something that they want to do, we think it will relieve some of the pressure on squares and perhaps on groundstaff themselves during the season.”But it is a one-year trial. And we are being very clear about that, because what we don’t want to encourage is the widespread stitching of pitches, because it is very difficult to de-hybrid them, but we do need to increase the carrying capacity of surfaces if we can.”Draw points revert to eight from fiveThe points available for a draw in the Championship will revert to eight next season, alongside 16 for a win, after a reduction to five and 16 for 2023, but the threshold for batting points will remain at 250 and 450 runs (up from 200 and 400 in 2022), with Fordham conceding that the tweaks – aimed at encouraging more attacking, “Bazball”-style cricket – had “worked against one another a little bit”.”Batting and bowling points are a necessary evil,” Fordham added. “They fulfil two main functions. They can help to promote or incentivise good pitch preparation, but they also provide a reward when matches get washed out, so that you haven’t been playing two innings for nothing. The recommendation was that we should be rewarding the draw that little bit more, yet encouraging good batting surfaces in the County Championship.”

Legendary Dutch football figure Louis van Gaal has revealed that he is no longer affected by cancer following a period of successful medical treatment. The 73-year-old, known for his outspoken personality and managerial excellence across Europe, gave an optimistic health update during his appearance on Dutch television.

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Van Gaal was diagnosed with prostate cancerHas successfully recovered from the illnessInsisted that he is getting fitter every dayFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Van Gaal first went public with his diagnosis in 2022 while serving as the head coach of the Netherlands national team. It was his third stint in that role, and he guided the team through their World Cup qualification campaign while quietly managing his own health battles behind the scenes.

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Despite the demanding nature of international football and the toll of medical treatments, Van Gaal remained dedicated to his role until the end of the Netherlands' run at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar later that year. Following their exit from the tournament, he stepped down from his national team duties.

WHAT VAN GAAL SAID

Reflecting on the journey from diagnosis to recovery, Van Gaal said in an interview with : "I'm no longer bothered by cancer. Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that's going well. I'm getting fitter and fitter."

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DID YOU KNOW?

Widely regarded as one of football’s most influential managers, Van Gaal boasts a resume that spans several of Europe’s elite teams. He made his mark at Ajax in the 1990s, famously leading the Dutch club to UEFA Champions League glory in 1995, a triumph that solidified his reputation as a tactical mastermind. He later took the reins at clubs including Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Manchester United, where he won multiple domestic titles. His time at United included an FA Cup victory in 2016, which turned out to be his final game in charge of the English club.

It isn’t clear at this stage if he will be able to keep wickets, but if fit, Pant is likely to be the team’s captain again

Nagraj Gollapudi11-Dec-2023Rishabh Pant is set to return to action for Delhi Capitals, that too as captain, in IPL 2024. ESPNcricinfo understands that the franchise expects Pant, who missed the 2023 season after suffering serious injuries in a car crash in December 2022, to be fully fit by the end of February.Related

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It could not be confirmed, however, if Pant will return as a wicketkeeper-batter, his usual role, or as a specialist batter. But the franchise is understood to be happy to have Pant as captain and batter.The first hint of Pant possibly making an IPL return came in November, when he attended a Capitals camp in Kolkata, which was also attended by senior franchise support staff including Sourav Ganguly (director of cricket), Ricky Ponting (head coach), and Pravin Amre (assistant coach). Subsequently, Pant took part in the discussions around the retention and release of players ahead of the next auction, scheduled for December 19 in Dubai, as well as the drafting of an initial auction plan.

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