نجح الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي فلامينجو البرازيلي، في تعزيز تقدمه على بيراميدز، في نصف نهائي بطولة كأس إنتركونتيننتال، -كأس التحدي-.

ويلتقي بيراميدز مع فلامينجو، الآن، في مواجهة نارية، تقام ضمن نصف نهائي كأس إنتركونتيننتال في قطر.

طالع| تشكيل بيراميدز أمام فلامينجو في كأس إنتركونتيننتال.. مايلي يقود الهجوم

وسجل دانيلو، الهدف الثاني لصالح فلامينجو في الدقيقة 52 من رأسية بعد عرضية مميزة استقبلها من كرة ثابتة.

وجاء هدف فلامينجو الأول في الدقيقة 24 من زمن الشوط الأول، عن طريق ليو بيريرا، بعد عرضية قابلها اللاعب برأسه في الشباك.

وكان فلامينجو قد فاز على كروز أوزول في كأس إنتركونتيننتال، بهدفين مقابل هدف، ليتأهل لنصف النهائي ويواجه بيراميدز.

أما بيراميدز، فوصل إلى دور نصف النهائي، بعد تخطي أوكلاند سيتي النيوزيلندي بنتيجة 3-0 في مباراة الدور التمهيدي الأول، ثم الفوز على الأهلي السعودي في دور ربع النهائي. هدف فلامينجو الثاني أمام بيراميدز في كأس إنتركونتيننتال

Less than two years after hoisting the World Series trophy, the Rangers and Bruce Bochy have "mutually agreed to end his managerial tenure with the organization," the team announced Monday. The Rangers also announced that they have offered Bochy a role in the front office in an advisory capacity.

The Rangers join the Giants and Twins as teams who parted ways with their managers on Monday after the conclusion of the 2025 regular season.

Bochy came out of retirement after the 2022 season to become the manager of the Rangers. In his first season with Texas in 2023, he led them to a 90-72 record and their franchise's first World Series victory. After the Rangers failed to make the playoffs in either of the last two seasons, they have decided to search for a new manager.

Bochy has been an MLB manager for 28 seasons with the Rangers, Padres and Giants. He's led every team he's managed to a World Series appearance, won four World Series, and has compiled a 2,252-2,266 (.498) career record.

Though offered a role in the Rangers' front office, the 70-year-old manager could be a contender for other vacancies, including the Giants, his old team. Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey, who played under Bochy in San Francisco simply said Monday, "I don’t know what his status is yet. I haven’t heard, so I can’t speak to that.”

Kyle Schwarber is currently set to become one of the top free agents available this offseason. Schwarber, who is entering the final months of his four-year deal with the Phillies, made his third All-Star Game and leads the National League in both home runs and RBIs this season.

If Schwarber doesn't re-sign with the Phillies and instead enters free agency, could he join his hometown team, the Reds? Schwarber grew up within an hour drive of Cincinnati and rooted for the team as a kid.

"There's so many different aspects that go into free agency, everything like that," Schwarber said on Monday before the Phillies defeated the Reds 4–1. "Especially where you're playing at now and you feel like you wanna just keep winning with the group here. There's unknowns, there's a business, and whatever happens happens, but if you asked the childhood Kyle that, yeah, you know, why wouldn't you want to play for your hometown team."

Schwarber's future after this season appears to be up in the air, but it looks like he hasn't ruled out joining the Reds if he doesn't return to Philly. Schwarber did notably offer some positive thoughts on the team the Reds have been building.

"I think they're young," Schwarber said. "I know that they made some moves at the deadline. Made some trades for some pieces that will be here for a while. I think that there's a lot of things Cincinnati should be happy about. I think the future here will be bright for them. … I think there are a lot of things that are looking up here in Cincinnati."

Phillies managing partner John Middleton did express last month that they want to retain Schwarber. Staying in Philadelphia would make sense for Schwarber, who has helped the Phillies make three consecutive postseason appearances since joining the team in 2022. The Phillies lead the National League East by 5.5 games, and are in the thick of World Series contention.

If returning to Philadelphia doesn't work out though, joining a rising Reds team seems like a good option for Schwarber.

Seamer says, ‘I don’t feel like it would take me that long,’ to be back to best after enforced layoff

Alan Gardner07-May-2020Mark Wood knows plenty about enforced breaks from cricket. Since his England debut in May 2015, he has played 15 out of 69 Tests for England, alongside 59 limited-overs internationals from a total of 145. In that time, he has helped win an Ashes series, claimed a World Cup-winners medal and bowled some of the fastest spells by an Englishman, so it’s understandable that people have been left wanting more.Injuries have been woven into the fabric of Wood’s international career, but they have not managed to take the edge off his bowling or his eagerness to get back into the fray. With the sporting world, and normal life in general, in abeyance due to the coronavirus, Wood has been able to quietly work his way back to fitness from a side strain sustained in South Africa earlier this year, as well as enjoy some of the benefits of fatherhood after the birth of his son in October.Extended time with the family is a rare luxury for most England cricketers, but Wood and his team-mates may soon have to contemplate being away from home for a two-month stretch during summer – something Wood has said he would be willing to do – if ECB plans to host series against West Indies and Pakistan come to fruition. At which point attention will turn once again to fitness, and the rather more unusual demands of returning to full-tilt competition after more than six weeks in lockdown.ALSO READ: If the game is compromised, then it shouldn’t be going ahead – Joe Root“I don’t feel like it would take me that long,” Wood says. “I’ve managed to maintain a level of fitness, I’ve got a bike in the house, I’ve been doing some running and I have weights in the garage. I’ve been trying to tick over and trying to strengthen the area in my side – I hope the time off has helped that – and then it’s a little bit of build-up back into bowling.”I’m not saying I’m quite a Jimmy Anderson, who gets into his groove nice and easy and seems just to be at the top of his game like a magician. He seems to just rock up and hit the top of off stump. I’m not quite like that but, having had these experiences, where I’ve had long periods off and come back determined to be better I’m confident I can do that again.”After playing a starring role in England’s comeback in South Africa, bowling consistently above 90mph in back-to-back Test wins in Port Elizabeth and Johannesburg – where he claimed career-best match figures of 9 for 100 – Wood suffered a recurrence of the side strain sustained during last year’s World Cup final. He was subsequently ruled out of the tour to Sri Lanka, which was aborted in mid-March as the coronavirus pandemic escalated.

“We’d all hate to bring things back to families, to cameramen or people working at the ground, the management. It’s important everyone is safe.”Mark Wood

Wood has spent his time in lockdown changing nappies and introducing son Harry to , as well as showing a knack for lip-synching in TikTok videos with his wife Sarah. Always quick to lighten the mood – as he did on debut when riding his imaginary horse on the outfield at Lord’s – Wood has been encouraged to see himself as England’s “smiling assassin” by coach Chris Silverwood, as he competes with the likes of Jofra Archer and Olly Stone to add extra pace to the attack.”The philosophy of Chris Silverwood, trying to have fun and enjoying it, I think brings out the best in me,” he says. “I’ve enjoyed it with ‘Spoons’, where he’s basically told me to go out there and try and have as much fun as I can, play with a smile on my face, be that smiling assassin when I’m bowling. I really enjoy having that sort of relaxed atmosphere. Having that rotation in the squad, having Stoney and Jofra as friendly competition where we can all push each other as fast bowlers I think is good for the team and certainly good for me.”It’s something I spoke about when I went away with the Lions [in 2018] with Kevin Shine, my cricket had sort of stood still for a little bit. He said ‘When I first saw you this is what you were like’, and I had a meeting with Spoons about it and he summed it up perfectly. He said, ‘I want you to be a smiling assassin’, and since then that’s stuck in my mind. It’s something I think fits well.”Mark Wood is used to time out of the game and returning better than ever•Getty ImagesThere are currently more weighty issues to be dealing with, as the ECB tries to plot a route through the summer that will involve playing international cricket behind closed doors – but Wood said the players were willing to put their trust in Ashley Giles, the managing director of England men’s cricket, and chief medical officer, Nick Peirce.”We’re all willing to get going as long as the environment is safe, that’s the main thing,” Wood said. “We’d all hate to bring things back to families, to cameramen or people working at the ground, the management. It’s important everyone is safe. I know everybody’s desperate to get going but the bigger picture is still what’s going on on the frontline with key workers, the doctors, people like that. We’re desperate to get cricket up and going but at the moment there’s bigger things out there.”Time away from the game has allowed an appreciation of those “bigger things”, though Wood laughs at the irony of being fully fit only for a global shutdown to deprive him of further playing opportunities.”I’m going to get injured aren’t I? A week after all this has ended I’m bound to get injured. First net my ankle’s gone. Nobody saw this happening after we came back from South Africa but from my own point of view it’s been nice to spend some time with my son and seeing him develop, having a bit of time with him. I’ve mentally enjoyed not thinking about cricket and diving into family life with him. Then as soon as cricket starts again I’ll dive back mentally into that.”

He became only the seventh bowler and the fourth pacer to the landmark

Sreshth Shah28-Jul-2020Courtney Walsh – March 2001 v South Africa, Port of SpainThe first man to reach 500 wickets, Walsh pinned Jacques Kallis lbw on the backfoot on the third day of the second Test. At the time of his dismissal, Kallis was displeased with the decision, suggesting an inside edge onto his pads; but Walsh didn’t care, and neither did the home fans. Walsh retired a month later, but not before adding a further 19 wickets to his tally.Shane Warne – March 2004 v Sri Lanka, GalleIn the spring of 2004, all eyes were on the two greatest spinners of the generation to see who would reach the 500-mark first. And it was the Australian who pipped Muttiah Muralitharan to the mark, when he forced Hashan Tillakaratne to top-edge a heave on the final day of the first Test with the visitors hunting for the win. Warne took 208 more wickets in the next three years to finish with 708 wickets, still the second-highest in the history of Test cricket.Muttiah Muralitharan – March 2004 v Australia, KandyWhile Warne got to 500 in the final innings of the first Test, Muralitharan got there in the first innings of the second Test, and that too at his home town. Fighting a stomach bug, Muralitharan took 4 for 48 in 15 overs, including the wicket of Michael Kasprowicz with an offbreak that bowled him through his defences. Although Warne’s match-winning performances dampened the Test match for Sri Lanka, Muralitharan reached the mark 21 Tests before the Australian. At the time, Muralitharan said that he wished to reach at least 650 wickets. He finished with 800, which is still 92 more than anyone else.Glenn McGrath – July 2005 v England, Lord’sMcGrath entered the iconic 2005 Ashes with 499 wickets, and the first English wicket – of Marcus Trescothick – helped the quick reach 500 when the opener edged one to Justin Langer at slip. It was a start Australia deperately needed, having been bowled out for 190 in the first innings. McGrath’s impetus helped them take a first-innings lead and even win the opening Test. Before the second game, however, McGrath injured his right ankle and the series turned on its head. Over the next 18 months, McGrath took 55 more wickets and at the time of his retirement, his tally of 563 was the most by a fast bowler.Anil Kumble – March 2006 v England, MohaliIn his 105th Test, Kumble became the second-fastest man to 500 when he trapped Steve Harmison lbw on the third day of the rain-hit second Test against England. It was his second wicket in two balls, with Kumble bowling Geraint Jones in the previous delivery with a wrong’un. He led through the game with nine wickets in a Player-of-the-Match performance. Kumble finished on 619 wickets, and remains the third-highest wicket-taker in Test cricket.James Anderson – September 2017 v West Indies, Lord’sLord’s became the first ground to witness two men getting to the hallowed figure when Anderson bowled opener Kraigg Brathwaite at the start of the second innings, ending an 11-year wait for a man to reach 500 Test scalps. In typical Anderson fashion, it was an inswinger that did Brathwaite, crashing into the batsman’s middle stump. The day got even better as Anderson took another six to wreck West Indies, finishing with 7 for 42 for the innings. Anderson is currently inching towards the 600-wicket mark, and if he gets there, will be the first pacer to do so in Test history.Stuart Broad – July 2020 v West Indies, Old TraffordBroad was on the field when Anderson got to 500, and Anderson accompanied him too when Broad got there three years later. The opponents were the same, and co-incidentally, so was the batsman. Kraigg Brathwaite, looking to defend off the back foot, was trapped lbw with a ball staying low and hitting him on his back leg on the final day of the final Test of West Indies’ tour. Broad got to the mark in his 140th Test, and is the slowest in terms of matches to get there.

Australia’s back-up bowlers showed promise, but their death bowling was a concern

Shashank Kishore09-Dec-2020ALSO WATCH: Match highlights: Kohli 85 in van in 3rd T20I as Wade, Maxwell shine (Indian subcontinent only)Nerveless Natarajan makes a markExactly a month ago, T Natarajan was named as one of four net bowlers in India’s tour party to Australia. The team management was impressed with his left-arm variety. With India’s fast bowling attack looking off-colour in their first two defeats on tour, he was handed an ODI debut in similar circumstances to Jasprit Bumrah’s in 2016. He’ll return home to a newborn, whom he is yet to meet, having made an impact in three of the four white-ball matches he featured in.Natarajan’s spell of 4-0-20-2 in Australia’s total of 194 in the second T20I helped India pull things back somewhat before Hardik Pandya helped clinch the chase. Natarajan finished the series with six wickets in three games and an economy rate of 6.91. This didn’t earn him the Player of the Series award, but Pandya, the winner, certainly underlined his impact. Kohli’s go-to death bowler in Bumrah’s absence, Natarajan showed there was more to him than just his ability to nail yorkers. His temperament and calmness under pressure have stood out – all promising signs a year out from the T20 World Cup.The Pandey-Iyer-Samson questionNone of the three managed to nail down a position. Sanju Samson thrilled like he often does with his six-hitting but failed to build on his starts. Manish Pandey had just one outing, where he struggled. Shreyas Iyer had a match-winning cameo sandwiched between two ordinary outings. With Suryakumar Yadav waiting in the wings, and India potentially having to move KL Rahul down the order when Rohit Sharma gets fit, Pandey, Iyer, Samson, Suryakumar and Rishabh Pant could jostle for two batting positions in the squad. Also, it’s entirely possible there could only be one spot up for grabs in the XI if India decide Ravindra Jadeja and Pandya, on current form, can bat at Nos. 5 and 6.ALSO WATCH: Video highlights: Sanju Samson falls cheaply in 3rd T20I(Indian subcontinent only)Sundar and Chahal add to India’s bowling varietyHaving been left out of India’s first T20I following an outstanding IPL season for Royal Challengers Bangalore – 21 wickets in 15 games and an economy rate of 7.08 – Yuzvendra Chahal made a mark as a concussion substitute to pick up three wickets and win India the first T20I single-handedly.Washington Sundar also had an excellent series, delivering frugal spells and going at only 7.08 in the 12 overs he bowled. Both his wickets – Aaron Finch and Steven Smith – came in the final T20I. But it was in the series opener, where he went for 0 for 16 in four overs, that he set the tone as India successfully defended 161. While Chahal cleverly used the advantage of bowling to big boundaries on one side, Sundar varied his lengths, and his nagging lines forced batsmen to try and improvise early in the innings.Now picture India’s bowling attack with a fully fit Pandya, Jadeja, Sundar, Chahal and three seamers – potentially Natarajan, Bumrah and one of Shardul Thakur or Mohammed Shami.Matthew Wade drops his shoulder and plays the ramp•Getty ImagesWade hits, Short missesNo Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc (for two matches), Josh Hazlewood and Kane Richardson. Aaron Finch missed the second T20I. David Warner missed the entire series with a groin injury. This was a chance for the back-ups to stand up. Where D’Arcy Short couldn’t capitalise, Matthew Wade, the stand-in captain, did with two half-centuries including a match-winning 50-ball 83 in the final game on Tuesday.ALSO WATCH (Indian subcontinent only): Video highlights: Sams stunner snares DhawanWithout Marcus Stoinis, Moises Henriques enjoyed good bowling returns, but couldn’t replicate that impact with the bat. Daniel Sams and Andrew Tye fell short while trying to defend 72 off the last six with Australia’s series on the line. Faced with a near-similar situation, their spin-twins Swepson and Zampa combined to take 4 for 44 in seven overs to help Australia secure a consolation win.Had Ashton Agar not been ruled out, Swepson may not have been summoned into the squad. Zampa provided Australia control in the middle overs on the face of some serious ball-striking. Among his three wickets, the one to dismiss Pandya in the final T20I with India needing 43 from 18 was game-changing.Who comes into the middle order?Just like India’s, there are a few contenders in Australia’s middle order too. Alex Carey, Wade, Henriques, Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green and Short could all possibly tussle over limited batting spots. This is considering Warner and Finch will be reunited at the top of the order, with Steven Smith and Glenn Maxwell floating around with Stoinis. Australia potentially have a five-match series against New Zealand and the BBL to narrow down their combinations for the T20 World Cup in October 2021.

The likelihood of a comfortable 2-0 series win can’t disguise the frailty in the hosts’ line-up

Firdose Moonda04-Jan-2021South Africa knew 621 was a mirage.Their score at SuperSport Park, built on former captain Faf du Plessis’ 199, seemed too good to be true … because it was. A depleted Sri Lanka were down to one frontline bowler for parts of that innings and, although it still took application to get runs on the board, the challenge of scoring them was greatly reduced.But does that mean 84 for 9 is reality?Bearing in mind the context (the collapse came after South Africa had reached 218 for 1, 61 runs ahead with oodles of batting to come) and the circumstances (the Wanderers surface quickened up on day two and the ball was moving around substantially) and you might be tempted to call it an aberration. But look at recent history, and you will have to question whether this showing at the Wanderers simply reflects the true state of South Africa’s batting.Last season, South Africa lost five wickets for less than 100 runs at some point in all 14 Test innings against India and England, and five for less than 50 runs in seven of those. Wickets fell in clumps at every stage of their innings, bookended by the tail folding in Vizag and the top and middle order stumbling at the Wanderers. And there are no mitigating circumstances, such as unplayable surfaces, to justify their performances. The pitches in India were good enough for the hosts to register seven centuries in the series between them, while at home, England scored three hundreds to South Africa’s zero.Lack of confidence appears to be South Africa’s biggest issue at present, with a few players in need of technical tweaks, and it’s something that can only be fixed with form. The domestic competition provides a place for players to re-find their feet, as it did for Aiden Markram and Dean Elgar who both scored first-class centuries (Markam has three) in the lead-up to this series.Related

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It’s not surprising then, that in such a run-desert, Elgar has been the oasis. Since January 2019, Elgar has scored more runs than all the other openers combined and is second only to Quinton de Kock among the rest of the line-up. Take de Kock, Elgar and Faf du Plessis away and no South African batsmen has scored more than 367 Test runs in the last two years, which suggests that the newcomers are not making the step up as well as it was hoped they might.Markram has just made his return from injury (although there had been pressure mounting on him before he broke his hand and then his finger) so we’ll cut him some slack and put the the spotlight on Rassie van der Dussen and Temba Bavuma, who are both being spoken about as candidates for the Test captaincy and have to start converting.Van der Dussen is newer on the international scene and has done better so far, especially in this Test with a knock that started patiently and built promisingly. After waiting 25 balls for his first run yesterday afternoon, he showed his strength on the pull and the drive this morning and though he was dropped on 44, once he got his half-century, it didn’t seem there was too much in the way of him carrying on. Then, he was strangled down the leg-side, attempting one swipe too many. Van der Dussen has now gone 43 international innings across all formats without a century, even though he appears to have the temperament to score many.Bavuma’s drought is much longer – five years almost to the day – since his only Test century and the concern around him now is the ways he has been getting out. After walking at SuperSport Park, he shouldered arms to an in-ducker when he should have offered a shot. By the time Bavuma was dismissed, Sri Lanka were already well into the tail so perhaps there’s little more he could have done, but a handy not-out would have done his average some good and showed a level of responsibility.Vishwa Fernando celebrates his maiden five-wicket haul•AFP via Getty ImagesCredit must go to Sri Lanka’s attack for showing glimpses of what could have been had more of their first-choice players been available to them through this series. Vishwa Fernando, who was the leading wicket-taker when Sri Lanka beat South Africa two years ago built on that with his maiden five-for and has now taken more wickets than any other Sri Lankan seamer in South Africa.Vishwa found seam movement and, for the most part, pitched it up and lured the South African batsmen in the channel outside off. De Kock and Nortje both nicked off that way. Equally impressive was debutant Asitha Fernando, who made good use of the bounce with back-of-a-length deliveries – one so short it sconed Lungi Ngidi – and deserved at least one more wicket. Van der Dussen was dropped off Asitha’s bowling.But Sri Lanka’s find of the tour must be Dasun Shanaka, who last played a Test three years before this series, and was expected to be a bit-part bowler in this series. Instead, he stood up in an injury crisis at Supersport Park, and snagged van der Dussen and du Plessis to open South Africa up here. His set-up of du Plessis, with a lifter on the penultimate ball of his 12th over and a fuller one with the final ball, to have him caught behind for 8, was when the momentum of the innings switched camps. Van der Dussen had fallen four overs before, de Kock went the over after, and Sri Lanka had South Africa by the neck. They went on to force a choke, but it has probably come too late.Dimuth Karunaratne has pushed them into a lead but, with three days left in the match, it will need to swell closer to 300 to raise realistic expectations of an upset. But that doesn’t mean the hosts don’t have things to think about, especially ahead of a visit to Pakistan and three Tests against Australia, in which a collapse will surely have greater consequences than it did here.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa spinners take their side to first win of the season

Umar Farooq09-Nov-2020Northern register second consecutive win
Captain Nauman Ali’s match haul of ten wickets helped Northern beat Sindh by 128 runs at UBL complex in Karachi. Northern had the upper hand throughout the match. They had a 111-run lead in the first innings and then set a target of 423, making 311 for 6 declared, thanks to centuries from Sarmad Bhatti (108) and Hammad Azam (100*).Sindh made a sloppy start to their chase of the big target, losing four of their batsmen for 77. Saud Shakeel was the bright spot for Sindh as he gave them hope with an innings of 174, but his contribution went in vain as Nauman ran through the rest of the line-up, bundling them out for 294.This was Northern’s second successive win and they are currently second on the table with 52 points, with Southern Punjab leading with 55 points.The contest was marred by unsavoury incidents, though, with Sindh captain Sarfaraz Ahmed being fined 35% of his match fee for using inappropriate language against an umpiring decision, and senior batsman Asad Shafiq fined 20% of his match fee for showing dissent towards an umpire’s decision.Spinners give Khyber Pakhtunkhwa first win of the season
Southern Punjab were undone by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa spinners Khalid Usman and Sajid Khan, who combined to take 15 wickets to lead their side to a 75-run win at the National Bank of Pakistan Sports Complex in Karachi.When Southern Punjab were set 263 to win in the fourth innings, Usman and Sajid didn’t let them settle down on what was a spin-friendly track, and skittled them for 187. It was KP’s first win of the season, after a loss to Balochistan and a draw against Sindh.It was a game of fine margins until the endgame. Mohammad Abbas took his 11th ten-wicket haul as KP went on to take a slender lead of 16 runs in the first innings, and when the contest entered the final day, Southern Punjab required another 250 runs with all ten wickets at their disposal. They were dealt an early blow, though, with captain Hussain Talat, who scored 131 in the first innings, dismissed by Sajid cheaply, and Umar Siddiq’s 56 was the only half-century in the innings. In the absence of a partnership, the two spinners continued to make inroads and intensify the pressure, ultimately condemning Southern Punjab to a defeat.Azhar Ali hits 95* as Central Punjab draw against BalochistanWith 55 required to win in the last hour at the National Stadium in Karachi, and with Azhar Ali at the crease and three wickets remaining, Central Punjab ended up pulling off a draw against Balochistan. The captain spent over 250 minutes in the middle and missed a century to cap what could have lifted his side, who are sitting at bottom of the table with two defeats.Earlier in the game, Amad Butt’s 6 for 57 helped Balochistan to a 55-run lead in the first innings after Central posted 306. Central bowlers had a better outing in the second innings, bowling Balochistan out for 213 with left-arm spinner Ahmed Safi Abdullah picking 4 for 31. Central Punjab had nearly three sessions to chase down a target of 269. Azhar being around would have given them some hope, but as three wickets quickly fell in the final session, the captain batted cautiously with the tail and finished with an unbeaten 95.

Delhi Capitals, meanwhile, could qualify with even just one win from their remaining matches

S Rajesh24-Oct-2020Kolkata Knight Riders – Played 10, Points 10
Two results over the last four days – Kings XI Punjab’s win against Delhi Capitals, and their own defeat against Royal Challengers Bangalore – mean that Kolkata Knight Riders have much less wriggle room than they had earlier. Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Kings XI are only one win behind them and are breathing down their necks. Besides, the Knight Riders’ net run-rate of -0.828 is currently the poorest among the four teams which are bunched together in the 8-10 point range.From the Knight Riders’ point of view, the positive is that they can still entirely control their progress to the playoffs: if they win all four and finish on 18, they will be through no matter what happens in the other matches. Also, their last two matches are against the teams which are currently languishing at the bottom of the table – Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals.If the Knight Riders lose one of the remaining four matches and finish on 16 points, things could get trickier depending on the team they lose to. If they lose to the Kings XI, who go on to beat the Sunrisers later today, then there could be five teams on 16 or more points, including the Knight Riders and the Kings XI. If the Sunrisers win later today, though, and then win their remaining matches, then they could finish on 16 too, along with the Knight Riders and the top three. However, that will be a tall order for the Sunrisers, given that their last three games are against the Capitals, the Royal Challengers and Mumbai Indians.If the Knight Riders lose two matches, though, then they will be at the mercy of other results thanks to their poor NRR, as up to seven teams could potentially finish on 14 or more points.Delhi Capitals – Played 10, Points 14
For the Capitals, the last 10 days of the league stage will be all about maintaining momentum and ensuring a top-two finish. Unlike the Knight Riders, who will play the league laggards in the last two matches, the Capitals will finish their league stage campaign with matches against two of the strongest teams in Mumbai and the Royal Challengers. Those results might well ensure which teams finish in the top two positions.However, for that to happen, the Capitals will probably have to take care of the teams which are below them on the points table. Two wins out of four will surely put them in the playoffs while one win should also be enough given their strong NRR, but the Capitals’ ambitions will be higher than merely qualifying for the playoffs.