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Liverpool midfielder James Milner could sign a new one-year deal at the club and Jurgen Klopp wants it to happen, according to reliable journalist Neil Jones.

The Lowdown: Milner a great servant

The 36-year-old has been a wonderful servant for the Reds since arriving in the summer of 2015, putting his experience and versatility to good use.

Milner has made 285 appearances for Liverpool in total and he is a much-loved figure who is renowned as an enormous influence in the dressing room, with Klopp comparing him to Luka Modric after Saturday’s 1-0 win away to Newcastle United in terms of still performing to a high level at the age of 36.

The English midfielder’s current deal expires at the end of this season, but a new update suggests that he could extend his stay at Anfield.

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The Latest: One more year?

Taking to Twitter as he shared a corresponding article for Goal, Jones claimed that a new one-year contract would appeal to both Milner and Klopp, suggesting that it will get signed. He outlined:

“Klopp wants Milner to stay and has made that clear. Milner wants to stay even though he knows he’s, at best, fifth choice. One more year?”

The Verdict: No-brainer for Liverpool

While Milner is no longer a regular starter for Liverpool, his mere presence at the club is most welcome given his aforementioned influence, and he showed with a stellar performance against Newcastle on Saturday that he remains a very handy squad player.

Retaining his services for another year makes perfect sense, with his fitness levels far superior to most players his age and his leadership still a massive part of the dressing room.

It feels like a no-brainer for all parties unless Milner wants to be a regular starter elsewhere, but given Liverpool’s current greatness, why would he want to go anywhere else?

In other news, a pundit has dropped a worrying Liverpool claim. Read more here.

Prithvi Shaw, 18, burst on to the Test scene with a rapid hundred against West Indies in Rajkot. Here are the big numbers from his innings

Bharath Seervi04-Oct-20181:07

Prithvi Shaw: Among the youngest and fastest debut Test centurions

99 – Balls taken by Prithvi Shaw to score his century, which is the third-fastest by any batsman on Test debut. Shikhar Dhawan’s 85-ball ton against Australia in Mohali in 2012-13 is the fastest century on debut. Dwayne Smith had reached hundred off 93 balls on his debut.3 – Number of batsmen to score centuries on their Test debut at a younger age than Shaw. Mohammad Ashraful and Hamilton Masakadza had done it before turning 18, while Saleem Malik was six days younger than Shaw. Overall, Shaw is the 15th India player to get a ton on his Test debut.2 – Shaw is the second-youngest India player to score a Test century, behind only Sachin Tendulkar. Overall, Shaw is the seventh youngest to get to a century in Tests.ESPNcricinfo Ltd3 – Players to score centuries on their first-class debut as well as on their Test debut. Before Shaw, India’s Gundappa Viswanath and Australia’s Dirk Wellham had this dual achievement. Virender Sehwag had scored a century on Test debut as well as in his maiden first-class innings, but that came in his second first-class match.1 – Prithvi Shaw, at 18 years and 329 days, topped the list of the youngest players to score a 50-plus score on Test debut for India. In fact, he is the first India teenager to score 50 or more on debut. The previous youngest India batsman to score 50-plus on Test debut was Abbas Ali Baig, scoring 112 at the age of 20 years and 126 days against England at Old Trafford in 1959.2 – Players to score 50-plus at a younger age than Shaw in Tests in India. Both were for Pakistan: Hanif Mohammad and Mushtaq Mohammad. Both achieved this before turning 17. Before Shaw, the youngest India player to score 50-plus in India was the current coach Ravi Shastri (19 years and 210 days), against England in Delhi in 1981-82.ESPNcricinfo Ltd2007 – The last time an India player younger than Shaw made a Test debut – Ishant Sharma at 18 years and 265 days against Bangladesh in Dhaka. Overall, Shaw is the 13th youngest Test debutant for India.3 – Number of batsmen to face the first ball of a Test match at a younger age than Shaw. Hamilton Masakadza, Tamim Iqbal and Imran Farhat are the ones who did it. For India, the previous youngest to face the first ball of a Test was Budhi Kunderan at 20 years and 113 days against Australia in 1959-60.14 – First-class matches played by Shaw before making his Test debut. He averages 56.72 in those games, having hit seven centuries in 26 innings. On his first-class debut, for Mumbai in 2016-17, he scored a century against Tamil Nadu in the semi-final of the Ranji Trophy – incidentally, at the same venue as of his Test debut.3- Number of higher individual scores on debut for India than Shaw’s 134. Dhawan’s 187 is the highest, followed by Rohit Sharma’s 177 and Viswanath’s 137. Overall, Shaw’s innings is the third-highest for any batsman at the age of 18 or less.

The BCB has striven to retain Bangladesh’s top-tier status in Tests – but now it needs to focus on developing a consistently competitive team in the longest format

Mohammad Isam01-Nov-2016The buzz surrounding Bangladesh’s two-match Test series against England is yet to wear off but the decoration at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, the home of Bangladesh cricket, has already changed to T20 colours. This was inevitable due to the schedule but the quick shift of attention on this occasion seemed jarring.That’s because arguably for the first time since their inaugural Test 16 years ago, Bangladesh has been competitive in a Test series against a major team. The 1-1 result could have been even better for the home side had they overcome tight corners in the Chittagong Test but in Dhaka, they finally beat a team ranked much higher than them.While the players involved will enjoy at least couple of days off, they will soon return to the hectic world of the Bangladesh Premier League, which is designed to swallow up attention spans, airwaves and column inches in the country. The win over England, a seminal moment in Bangladesh’s cricket, will not be given the rightful time to sink in, and be reflected upon.The general apathy towards Test cricket has been around for a very long time, and much of it is due to better results in ODI, which was already a format highly relatable with the public due to Bangladesh’s historic proclivity towards one-day cricket.It has also partly caused a disconnect between the BCB’s protection of Test status and its efforts to keep Tests as the primary format for the Bangladesh team. The BCB has vehemently opposed the idea of a two-tier Test system, and whenever discussions surrounding this proposal have come up, the board has successfully wiggled out of it.In early 2014 a working group of the Finance & Commercial Affairs committee of the ICC proposed that teams ranked Nos. 9 and 10 (Bangladesh at the time) play in the Intercontinental Cup from 2015, but it was an idea that was ultimately shelved along with many other proposals of the “Big Three” era. The BCB also opposed the two-tier structure, which was discussed this year at the ICC, and ultimately prevailed after the plan was shelved once again. But its opposition in board meetings hasn’t necessarily contributed to an attitude towards giving the team more Tests.The latest gap, which lasted more than 14 months, was the team’s longest period without a Test match. While it is true that Australia postponed their two-Test series in October 2015 due to security fears, and Bangladesh’s first-ever Test in India was moved from August this year to February 2017, the BCB also shelved plans to play Tests against Zimbabwe in November last year, January this year and even after the World T20 in March.Scheduling around the Under-19 World Cup was given as one of the reasons for the postponement of hosting Zimbabwe but the BCB generally prefers to play the format of the ICC event in the lead-up. So after playing three ODIs and two T20s against Zimbabwe in November last year, Bangladesh played against the same opposition in four more T20s in January so that they were in the groove for the subsequent Asia Cup and World T20.Previously, Bangladesh’s longest stretch without a Test was exactly 14 months (from June 4 2010 to August 4 2011), while there have also been gaps of 13 (once), seven (twice) and six months (three times).Attentions will quickly switch to the return of the Bangladesh Premier League•BCBBefore the 2007 and 2011 World Cups, Bangladesh put all their focus on ODIs, which for the first instance was reasonable because they had a poor 2003 tournament in South Africa. But ahead of the 2011 World Cup at home, postponed Tests against New Zealand were hardly given a thought because of a 4-0 victory in the ODIs.Most teams schedule more ODIs before a 50-over World Cup but Bangladesh’s focus shifted away from Tests in 2000 – when they gained Full Member status – to ODIs by 2006 mostly due to the lack of progress in the longer format during this period. Their only series win was against Zimbabwe at home in 2005, and only after they had lost most of their top players, and the next wins came against a third-rate West Indies side in 2009. Beating Zimbabwe in Harare back in 2013 was perhaps their most well-earned win, given how they had to bounce back from a massive defeat in the previous game; another notch in their belt was drawing against Sri Lanka in Galle that same year. But these are slim pickings for a Test nation that promised much in the beginning.What has also been frustrating of late is the absence of A-team tours, which has disappointed many in the Bangladesh team management. If they had been arranged, then Test specialists like Mominul Haque and Taijul Islam could have been in touch with top-quality cricket. Instead, they had to rely on long net sessions and some domestic first-class matches in the build-up for England.Even for the Test series against New Zealand, Bangladesh’s preparation would entail four weeks of BPL followed by a ten-day camp in Sydney and then three ODIs and three T20s in New Zealand. Then they play the one-off Test against India after which a tour of Sri Lanka with Tests and ODIs is also being discussed before they head into the Champions Trophy. Even afterwards, there will be a push for ODIs as they would also like to ensure automatic qualification to the 2019 World Cup, though the BCB president Nazmul Hassan has suggested that is already within their grasp.Bangladesh cricket has a lot on its plate in 2017, with more focus on ICC events like the World T20s as well as in the home front where the BCB elections are knocking at the door. Test cricket will continue to have less attention but if they are really interested to get better at it, perhaps proper succession planning is the answer. It should include four-day matches against Afghanistan and Ireland, which sounds unsexy but even if Bangladesh A play the games, they would get opposition that is better than the fare at the domestic level.The talk of two-tier Test cricket will not die down any time soon so if Bangladesh wants to keep itself relevant as a Test-playing nation, focusing solely on keeping their status won’t be enough. Playing more Tests gives them more chance of winning, which would in turn make them more watchable and commercially viable as a cricket nation. The win against England should not be treated as an exception; it is a firm stepping stone for Bangladesh towards greater progress.

R Ashwin has reaped the benefits of reverting to classic offspin bowling and with the confidence his captain shows in him, he can become deadly

Alagappan Muthu in Fatullah15-Jun-20152:00

Insights – Insights – Ashwin India’s go-to spinner in Asia

“Have they shook hands?”The thought couldn’t be helped. India had bowled Bangladesh out in 66 overs, and with enough in the bank to cash in on a follow-on. But the clouds had gathered again and there was only an hour or so left in the game. Barely two days’ play has been possible in the Fatullah Test. Chances of a result had gone down the drain, along with rain water to fill three dozen swimming pools. Yet with the potential for 30 overs including extra time, Virat Kohli wanted one last gamble. And he took out his ace in the hole: R Ashwin.An offbreak fizzed from outside leg, as it was supposed to. It drew Imrul Kayes into a prod, as was planned. The edge hitchhiked off the thigh pad to the first of two slips but was put down. If Bangladesh survived long enough, play was certain to be called off by the mandatory 15 overs. As it was. But Ashwin wouldn’t make it easy.India have said they are on the hunt for wins. So the lead spinner will be pestered for miracles. Trying too much can never be ruled out under such circumstances. But Ashwin had secured his first (of 10) five-wicket hauls outside India – 5 for 87 in 25 overs – through classic offspin bowling in the first innings. He would loop the ball up and then get it to dip. Turn and bounce become academic after that. He trusted his stock delivery, the only variations he tried were those of pace and length and he stuck to a rhythmic, repeatable action. Nothing needed to change.”He’s priceless, to be honest,” Kohli said, “In a subcontinent Test match, you won’t get any better than him. He can bowl at right-handers, at left-handers, he can deceive people with pace, with spin, with bounce. I mean you name it and he has it.”So nothing needs to change looking ahead either. Even in limited-overs cricket, Ashwin had worked out that he is at his best when dealing the ball enough flight. The results were on show at the World Cup: 13 wickets at an average of 25 and an economy of 4.28. Among spinners, he’d bowled the most overs – 77 – and maidens – 6 – and was only two wickets shy of Imran Tahir and Daniel Vettori’s tally.A clever Ashwin is an asset, but an Ashwin who is clear enough in his mind to base his attack around his offbreak can be deadly. Especially in subcontinent conditions. Batsmen are most nervous when the length of the ball prevents them from deciding whether to go forward or not. Often times that means they push with their hands to make up the distance. As Tamim Iqbal did, to be stumped here. As Mushfiqur Rahim did, to be caught. As Shuvagata Hom did, to be caught again.But with a well-stocked bag of tricks comes the compulsion to dip into them. There have been times when the carom ball was strutted out so often that the offbreak might have felt like the jealous understudy. Then there were the changes he often made to his bowling action. As though it had fallen behind the times and he wanted to stay hip. Ashwin had even ceded as much to explain his borrowing Sunil Narine’s action, replete will the full-sleeved shirt that hid the elbow.”I just wanted to see if you can get more revs on the ball, if you can do a little bit with your elbow, as much as [is allowed], that is,” he had said after the Asia Cup in March 2014. “That’s what it was all about. You can get a lot of advantage with these things. So why should I lag behind if someone else is getting a competitive edge?”He’d returned to his normal routine immediately after that match against Bangladesh, including ditching the full-sleeves.Besides, his own tinkering, captains have assigned defensive mandates to him. Especially in away Tests. And when protecting runs enters into a spinner’s equation, it can get ugly. The switch to a limited-overs mindset can come unbidden. The urge to bowl around the wicket and at the pads would seem appropriate. The fact that the batsman is quite comfortable with that, since you are diminishing your chances of getting him out, slips the mind. And the good ones find ways to milk that line far easier.Ashwin had discovered that on his first tour to Australia in 2011: 168 overs, 565 runs, nine wickets. On his next trip abroad, he was dropped after the Boxing Day Test in Johannesburg. Eight months outside the Test team. The murkiest time of his career so far. It is difficult to ascertain if he had fallen off the wagon himself, or if his confusion was a byproduct of the team wanting his role to be summarily overhauled: from attack to contain.”I think he is not being handled properly,” former India left-arm spinner Maninder Singh had said in February 2014. “Somebody who came into the Indian side because he had the capability and the urge to take wickets, he was eager to take wickets in 20-overs cricket, becomes defensive in Test cricket where you are supposed to take wickets … Something is going wrong somewhere, someone is giving him the wrong advice.”So Ashwin decided to block out the noise. The World T20 arrived. He did too, with a simple action and a fetish for flighted offbreaks. India waltzed into the final and wowed the audience with the guile their spinners persisted with even in the one format where they were supposed to be most endangered. The flatter trajectory was as good as outlawed, and Ashwin said, “The ball is landing exactly where I want.”There were evidences of similar form in Fatullah. He was able to assess the pitch quickly, the batsmen’s weaknesses in double that time, plan his traps and spring them. The confidence he had was exemplified when he was miffed at the appointment of a deep cover towards the dying stages of the fifth day and demanded he stride back inside the circle.”He understands the game well,” Kohli said. “As a captain, you don’t need to tell him much because he’s very clear about what he wants to do, and I’m pretty confident of his contribution in the coming season, and he’s pretty geared up as well. He’s going to be really important for us.”It would take courage and self-belief not to abuse his variations. More so against batsmen he will meet soon: AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla and Kumar Sangakkara can frighten bowlers to dig for plan Z and beyond. But the offbreak is a classic and there is a reason why the classics are highly rated.

The abrupt discarding of England’s highest international run-scorer appears to have been the result of catastrophic mismanagement. The ECB owes us all an explanation

George Dobell05-Feb-20140:00

‘The ECB has to be more accountable’

It is no coincidence that Kevin Pietersen’s international career has run concurrent with England’s greatest period of success for at least 50 years.When England won their first Ashes series in almost two decades, Pietersen’s century sealed the triumph. When England won their first global limited-overs trophy, Pietersen was Man of the Tournament. When England went to No. 1 in the Test rankings with a 4-0 defeat over India, Pietersen led the way with a batting average of 106.60. And when England came from behind to win in India, Pietersen played the series-turning innings in Mumbai. He has been at the forefront of almost every success England have enjoyed in the last decade.Even amid the rubble of the recent thrashing in Australia, Pietersen led the way. On the pitch, he was England’s leading run-scorer; off it, he could be seen helping other players in the nets.James Anderson and Stuart Broad both adopted Pietersen’s batting stance having worked with him, while Pietersen was also conspicuous in his encouragement of young players such as Gary Ballance and Ben Stokes. There is no suggestion that he stinted in his fitness or technical preparation. He looked, most of the time, like the model senior professional.Kevin Pietersen offered advice to James Anderson, among others, on England’s tour of Australia•Getty ImagesSo what has changed? What has changed since Ashley Giles, one of those who supposedly gave his support to the decision to cut Pietersen adrift, rated him a “million-dollar asset” on January 15; since Andy Flower praised his “determination” and labelled him a “great player” on December 10; or since Graeme Swann rated his attitude as “great” on January 27. Indeed, as recently as Christmas Day, Alastair Cook said Pietersen “has a huge part to play in the future” and praised the “excellent” way his squad had “stuck together in the dressing room”.Whispers suggest there were a couple of incidents, including a heated row with Cook in Sydney, in the last days of the tour. But, if Pietersen was so disruptive, why was he not disciplined at the time? If Cook and Pietersen had such a fierce row are they not both responsible and is Cook really the man to make a dispassionate decision? If, in a team meeting, Pietersen was asked for his views at the end of a chastening series, can he be penalised for stating them? And why is the ECB unable to tell us the reason for this drastic course of action?The manner of the announcement – with Pietersen appearing to go quietly – suggests a deal has been done. But it is not just Pietersen who must be placated here.England supporters deserve answers. It is unacceptably arrogant to dismiss their legitimate interest with an evasive media statement. It is unacceptable to discard England’s highest international run-scorer without explaining exactly why the management believe the team will be stronger without him. It is absurd to claim that, with two global events in the next 12 months and one within weeks, that this is the time to start a long-term rebuilding operation. And it is disingenuous to claim, via off-the-record briefings, that all the senior players were canvassed and gave negative views on Pietersen. Several, at least, claim to be as confused by this episode as Pietersen seems to be. The ECB has to be more transparent and accountable.The finality of this announcement will also hinder the next team director. Any credible applicant for that job will want to assemble their own team, appoint their own captain and make their own judgements on players. Yet the ECB has decided, without justifying its decision, to commit to a captain who, despite his many positive qualities, has only once averaged even 28 in five series against Australia, and a team without the man who might well be rated, upon reflection, as England’s best batsman in half a century.England’s new management team may feel that this is a strong decision. But truly strong leaders accept alternatives, diversity and imperfection. Strong leaders are flexible and embrace difference. Strong leaders understand that genius very often comes at a cost, but a cost that is worth paying.

By allowing the situation to reach this conclusion and in taking such a drastic decision, this is a catastrophic failure of management. England are not embracing change, they are embracing mediocrity

If you can’t manage, you shouldn’t be in management. By allowing the situation to reach this conclusion and in taking such a drastic decision, this is a catastrophic failure of management. England are not embracing change, they are embracing mediocrity.It is also a mistake to think this matter is closed. Until the ECB explains exactly how this happened, the questions will remain. Furthermore, England now face the potential prospect of finding new players to bat at No. 2 No. 3 and No. 4 in their Test team and will know that, every time they fail or Pietersen flourishes in whichever domestic league he finds himself at that time, the same questions will be asked: why not pick him? Cook has taken on a burden that will become wearisome very soon.Pietersen is not perfect. He can seem brash, he can seem arrogant, he can seem self-interested and the manner of his dismissals can be infuriating. But if you accept a player who can hit good bowlers out of the attack – it was his assault against a ferociously quick Shaun Tait that won England the final of the World Twenty20 in 2010, to name one of dozens of examples – then you accept that he will, at times, fall to catches at long-on or long leg. If you ask your players to play fearless cricket but then hammer them for failing, you will create the culture of fear and inhibition that choked England throughout their tour of Australia.There are parallels here with the end of David Gower’s international career. Just as England’s last genius batsman was pushed into early retirement by the Gradgrinds of the world, so Pietersen is being pushed away by those who should feel gratitude for his contribution. Had county cricket not lured Pietersen to the UK, the careers of Giles Clarke, Andrew Strauss, Andy Flower and Cook would all be much altered.England cricket is the poorer for the absence of players such as Gower and Pietersen. It will be less colourful, less entertaining and less competitive. But in England the greater sin is to be seen to give your wicket away with a loose stroke rather than leaving a straight delivery and allowing it to hit your stumps. Failure is accepted so long as it is not accompanied by flair. Genius is doubted and distrusted and, in England, you are forgiven for turning your back and going on a rebel tour – Gooch, Gatting, Graveney et al – but not for rocking the boat. In England, success has been a brief interlude in a general drama of failure.This England environment, in recent times, has a record of ruining players. A confused Steven Finn has regressed, an over-used Swann has retired, an exhausted Jonathan Trott has taken time out and the loss of form of the likes of Cook and Joe Root suggests that the schedule is part of an unsustainable business plan that risks ruining the greatest assets of all: the players.It is increasingly hard to avoid the conclusion that it is the institution at fault, not the individuals. Change may well be required, but it is right at the top that it should start.