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Rassie shuts down Pumas ‘bad boys’ talk
The Springboks are not preparing for a spiteful battle in Buenos Aires on Saturday despite Argentina’s’ ill-tempered clash with England last month.
Los Pumas’ most recent Test descended into chaos, with seven yellow cards shown and tempers flaring again after the final whistle following a controversial TMO decision that denied the hosts a dramatic late try. saltysenoritaaz.org
But Bok coach Rassie Erasmus dismissed any suggestion that Saturday’s one-off Test will go down the same path.
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“We know Argentina well. We play them twice every year apart from this year, so we know their players, they know us,” said Erasmus.
“Some of our players play with them at French clubs, others play with them in Japan, so we’ve come a long way with the guys who are playing for them. There are 10 guys who we don’t know in their team.
“What happened in their previous game in terms of the refereeing is not for us to comment. We’ve got Christophe Ridley as the referee for this weekend.
“Obviously the new protocols make it quite tough to communicate to the referee before a game. But we’ve never experienced Argentina to be a team that’s negative or too feisty. Obviously they’re hard men and physical guys, but we’ve never found them to be unsportsmanlike.”
SACHA: I’m not coming in with a big head
Meanwhile, fit-again flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu says his focus is simply on helping the Springboks continue building after making his return from injury.
The 24-year-old is back in the No 10 jersey after missing the opening part of the season and says he is not trying to do anything extraordinary in his comeback Test.
“I’m just coming in trying to keep progressing our game, keep us functioning and taking control of the departments that matter in my position,” Feinberg-Mngomezulu said.
“I’m just really trying to build again but I don’t feel too far behind because I’ve worked really hard on my rehab.
“I’m just trying to build what I can towards the squad.”
Photo: Floris van Schouwenburg/Gallo Images
The post Rassie shuts down Pumas ‘bad boys’ talk appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Pakistan spinners leave West Indies reeling in Trinidad
Pakistan’s spinners put their team on course for a series-levelling victory as the West Indies stumbled to 103 for six – a lead of just 60 runs – on an eventful third day of the second and final Test in Trinidad on Tuesday.
Abdullah Shafique’s unbeaten 160 ensured the visitors did not completely squander an excellent overnight platform in eventually getting to a first-innings total of 387.
Sajid Khan then made his second meaningful contribution of the day in taking four second-innings wickets, while Ali Usman claimed two, including home captain Roston Chase caught-and-bowled off the final ball of the day.
First-innings top-scorer Justin Greaves will carry the fight for the West Indies into the fourth morning with uncertainty over the availability to bat of regular opener Brandon King.
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On a deteriorating pitch offering sharp turn and variable bounce, West Indies left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican was as much in his element as 18 months earlier against these same opponents in Multan.
Here, his haul of six for 112, including three wickets in four balls to wrap up the Pakistan innings on the stroke of tea, would have been a portent of things to come.
Yet having started the day in the comfortable position of 266 for two and within sight of the West Indies first-innings total of 344, it took an error of judgement from Pakistan captain Babar Azam to trigger a gradual slide as the visitors’ last eight wickets fell for 106 runs.
Having put the West Indies bowlers to the sword with delightful, confident strokeplay on the second afternoon, Babar was a picture of strokeless paralysis at the start of the day, as if the prospect of a first Test century in almost four years had gotten the better of him.
He managed to eke out a couple of runs to add to his overnight 86 before taking off for a non-existent single and, sent back by Shafique, dived desperately but in vain as the direct hit at the striker’s end by King from point found Babar short of his ground.
West Indian delight at Babar’s dismissal was transformed to concern over the welfare of King, who remained prone on the outfield after effecting the dismissal.
After several minutes of assessment of his situation he was stretchered off with what was later diagnosed to be back spasms.
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That unexpected breakthrough triggered a mini-slide as three wickets fell for five runs, fast bowler Shamar Joseph and Warrican claiming a wicket each.
Khan offered a measure of stability with Shafique, the pair putting on 59 for the seventh wicket before another pacer, Jayden Seales, removed the lower-order batsman for 30.
With the door open to a vulnerable tail, Warrican wasted no time in wrapping up the innings, taking three wickets in four balls with Shafique stranded at the non-striker’s end and leaving Pakistan to rue opportunities missed to earn a much more significant lead.
Shafique’s innings occupied more than seven-and-half hours during which he faced 323 deliveries, striking 15 fours and three sixes.
“Jomel was really excellent for us today, staying at the stumps and finishing off the innings well,” said West Indies bowling coach Ravi Rampaul.
“At this stage though, and given the way the pitch is playing, if we can somehow push the lead to 150 we would have a chance.”
Khan was at his most rampant in the final session, accounting for Tagenarine Chanderpaul and Amir Jangoo swiftly before adding Shai Hope and nightwatchman Seales to his list of victims.
Chase surveyed the carnage from the other end only to succumb to the constant pressure himself, the reaction of the home skipper to his demise almost a mirror of Babar’s disconsolate trek to the pavilion more than seven hours earlier.
Usman also posed a constant threat, the left-arm spinner having earlier removed Kavem Hodge, whose 34 is the top score so far in an innings in danger of going into complete freefall.
–AFP
Photo: Pakistan Cricket/X
The post Pakistan spinners leave West Indies reeling in Trinidad appeared first on SA Cricket Mag.
Wallace Sititi: All Blacks treating every match on tour like a Test
The All Blacks are preparing for a big physical forward battle when they open their Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry (RGR) tour with a match against the Stormers at the Cape Town Stadium on Friday night.
Loose forward Wallace Sititi, back in the All Blacks mix after missing out on their final Nations Championship game against Ireland in July, is excited to get back down to business and eager to front up against the South African franchises.
The All Blacks will be looking to lay down a marker with a good win over the Stormers, before taking on the Sharks next Tuesday, followed by the Bulls on Saturday, and then the first of four Tests against the Springboks at Ellis Park on 22 August.
But to do that they will need to gain the upper hand in the set piece battle, according to Sititi, which will give them the freedom to play their game.
“They’re a big pack, that is what we know. But they are a big forward pack that loves to run the ball and loves the collision battle, so we’ve got to respect them up front,” explained Sititi.
“They (Stormers backline) love to use the ball as well, so we’ve got to be able to match them up front. We want to give our backs out wide all the opportunities they want.”
Prove their worth
Although the All Blacks aren’t expected to name their strongest team for their tour games against the SA franchises, Sititi is well aware that they are chances for some of the players not expected to make the Test match 23 to prove their worth.
“Those midweek games against the franchises, we treat them like they’re Test matches, and we know the quality of the teams, so we’ll prepare accordingly,” said Sititi.
Although Sititi has yet to play against an SA franchise, due to the South African teams pulling out of Super Rugby after Covid, he has heard plenty about it from some of his older teammates.
“When I played my first year of Super Rugby, South African teams were no longer in the competition,” said Sititi.
“I wouldn’t know what it is like to play against the SA teams, but at the same time, I would love to know (by experiencing it).
“A lot of the boys talk about the tours coming out here, and how they really enjoyed it. And also, we know how good South African footy is.
“So, would playing them in Super Rugby make us better rugby players? Yeah, 100%, it’s quality opposition. However, like I said, I wouldn’t know what it’s like.”
RDC: où en est le projet d'échange de prisonniers entre Kinshasa et l'AFC/M23?
En RDC, un dossier sensible pourrait enfin bouger dans les prochains jours, celui de l'échange de prisonniers entre Kinshasa et le groupe rebelle AFC/M23, promis depuis des mois dans le cadre du processus de paix. Un premier geste se prépare du côté de Beni, dans l'est du pays, où un groupe patiente depuis plusieurs semaines. Qui sont ces personnes concernées, et qu'est-ce qui a longtemps empêché ce processus d'avancer ?