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Southampton right-back Kyle Walker-Peters has been identified as a summer target for Premier League rivals Chelsea, according to transfer insider Fabrizio Romano.

The Lowdown: Attracting interest

The 25-year-old still has three years remaining on his contract at the St. Mary’s Stadium, but recent reports have suggested that the Saints would be willing to let him leave this summer if they received an offer in the region of £40m.

The defender has been attracting interest from both Manchester United and Arsenal throughout the transfer window, but another name from the top-flight now appears to have emerged as a new potential suitor, and it comes in the form of the Blues.

The Latest: Chelsea plotting Walker-Peters move

Taking to Twitter, Romano revealed that Chelsea have held talks inside the club regarding a potential move for Walker-Peters. He wrote:

“Chelsea are considering many options for right-back position, to be discussed after Cucurella. Kyle Walker-Peters, one of the options alongside Denzel Dumfries.

“Dumfries top of the list but Inter want to keep him, still no bid.

“Walker-Peters, discussed internally.”

The Verdict: Would be a huge loss

Walker-Peters has been an integral part of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s starting XI since arriving from Tottenham Hotspur two years ago, and so it would be a huge loss if the south coast outfit were to lose him now.

The two-cap international, hailed for having an ‘immense’ spirit by sports journalist Josh Bunting, averaged 1.8 tackles and two successful dribbles per league game last season, via WhoScored, highlighting his ability to affect the game at both ends of the pitch.

There’s no doubt that Southampton will want to keep hold of Walker-Peters, hence why they’ve put the £40m price tag on his head, but if an offer in that proximity were to be presented, it might just be too good to turn down.

Celtic have been potentially handed the green light to launch a move to sign Maccabi Haifa midfielder Mohammed Abu Fani.

What’s the news?

According to a recent report from the Daily Record, the Israeli club ‘have left the door open for a potential summer exit, admitting that they would accept a “suitable offer” for the player once they had complete their Champions League second round qualifiers.’

It was reported in June that the Hoops had their eye on the midfielder, who has spent his entire career in Israel.

A product of Haifa’s youth system, the 24-year-old has gone on to make 101 senior appearances for the club across all competitions, scoring 11 goals and delivering seven assists along the way.

With 44 appearances and 12 goal contributions to his name last season across all competitions, this highlights just how useful he can be in front of goal at times.

On the international stage, Abu Fani – who is currently valued at €4m (£3.3m) – has made 46 appearances for Israel across their youth and senior teams, scoring six goals in the process.

Back in January, Sanny Rudravajhala quote-tweeted a now-deleted clip of the Haifa figure keeping possession of the ball during a game against Maccabi Tel Aviv when his side won 3-2 after being 2-0 down, with the journalist lauding Abu Fani’s efforts as a “thing of beauty”.

Bearing in mind how the Bhoys have seen the likes of Nir Bitton, Tom Rogic and Ismaila Soro leave Parkhead since the end of last season, despite seeing Aaron Mooy arrive on a free transfer, launching a move for Abu Fani should definitely be under consideration before the window closes.

Having also missed out on the chance to sign Vinicius Souza and Fausto Vera, this highlights Celtic’s eagerness to bring a new midfielder in alongside Mooy.

Now that it has been revealed that the Israeli club would be willing to entertain offers for their midfield star, this should prompt the Parkhead hierarchy to get the chequebook out and see what it would take to secure Abu Fani’s signature.

If they can pull it off and get him embedded with the rest of Postecoglou’s players, this should put to bed any concerns that some Celtic fans may have about heading into the new season without the likes of Rogic, Soro and Bitton.

AND in other news: Ange can now axe £3.6k-p/w flop in Celtic bid for £6.8m target with “great potential”

ExWHUemployee has dropped an update on the future of reported West Ham United transfer target Jesse Lingard.

What’s the talk?

In a recent post on The West Ham Way Patreon, the Hammers insider revealed that, despite a recent report by the Daily Mail claiming that David Moyes’ side are set to beat Everton in the race for the out-of-contract forward this summer, this is in fact not the case – with talks between the east London side and the 29-year-old set to resume towards the end of the week.

In his post, Ex said: “This story has been verified by two sources – one at West Ham and one close to the player – to be rubbish, again!

“Talks are hoping to take place at the latter end of the week, but yet again another person has jumped the gun with the story. It is best to ignore this story until anything is confirmed as advancing. It seems to be causing a lot of meltdowns in the West Ham fan base.”

Supporters will be gutted

Considering just how exciting an addition Lingard would very much look to be to Moyes’ attacking arsenal at the London Stadium next season, Ex’s claim that the 29-year-old is not currently close to agreeing a move to E15 this summer is sure to have left supporters of the Irons gutted.

Indeed, over his 16 Premier League appearances during a loan spell at West Ham in 2020/21, the £16.2m-rated talent proved just how impressive a full-time addition he would be for the club, bagging nine goals, providing five assists and creating three big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 2.6 shots, making 1.1 key passes and completing 1.1 dribbles per game.

These returns saw the 32-cap international average simply sensational SofaScore match rating of 7.19, not only ranking him as Moyes’ best performer in the league but also as the 20th-best player in the division as a whole – playing a key role in the Hammers sealing an impressive sixth-place finish that season.

As such, while Lingard’s £150k-per-week wage demands are somewhat on the high side, it is clear to see that, should the former Manchester United forward be able to recreate this level of form in east London next season, he would be well worth it – leading us to believe that Moyes must do everything he can to get a deal over the line for Lingard ahead of the Toffees this summer.

AND in other news: Moyes given green light for “scary” £30m West Ham target, it’d be an “incredible” coup

Leeds United are ‘tracking’ West Ham forward Sonny Perkins on international duty in a tournament in Croatia.

The Lowdown: Phil Hay reveal

The Whites have already added to their first-team ranks with moves for Brenden Aaronson and Rasmus Kristensen ahead of Jesse Marsch’s first full season in charge.

However, Victor Orta still has his eye on academy additions, with Phil Hay revealing earlier this month that Leeds were lining up deals for both Perkins and Birmingham City’s George Hall.

Perkins, described as a ‘stand out’ player for the Hammers youth side, contributed to 16 goals in 24 appearances in Premier League 2 and the U18s Premier League last season.

The Latest: Joe Donnohue post

Leeds journalist Joe Donnohue took to Twitter on Monday afternoon, name-checking both Perkins and Hall, who have been representing England in a youth tournament over in Croatia.

He claimed the Whites are still ‘tracking’ the pair, who helped England win the four-team tournament.

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The Verdict: Good signs

The Whites broke a Premier League record last season by handing eight teenagers their top-flight debuts, so Perkins and Hall could be the next to move to Elland Road and break through in the coming years.

Perkins has an impressive record at youth level, and with Joe Gelhardt and Sam Greenwood establishing themselves in Marsch’s first-team squad last season, the West Ham man could become the Whites’ new U23 star in attack.

A new senior striker is also on the agenda, so it could well be a busy few months for Ortta and co in the transfer market.

In other news: Next step now taken on Kalvin Phillips leaving Leeds in big development. 

Despite finishing in 17th place in the Premier League table, Leeds United were still a very capable attacking side at times this season.

In fact, the Whites racked up a total of 711 shot-creating actions throughout the campaign, which is more than a number of teams that finished above them in the table such as West Ham United, Wolves and Leicester City.

One figure that played a massive part in Leeds’ season in an attacking sense is Raphinha.

With 35 appearances under his belt as well as 11 goals and three assists, no other Leeds player managed to equal the number of shots at goal (85) or successful dribbles (59) the Brazilian made.

Now that their turbulent campaign has come to an end and Jesse Marsch has guided them to safety, the focus can turn to getting ready for the next campaign and making sure they aren’t involved in another relegation battle.

One figure that the Yorkshire club have been linked with that could benefit from having such a deadly attacking player next to him, such as Raphinha, is Blackburn Rovers striker Ben Brereton-Diaz.

Last August, Tony Mowbray said that he hoped the centre-forward would be “hungry for goals” for his current club, which is exactly what he turned out to be by finishing the season as their top scorer.

Specifically, the 23-year-old found the net 22 times in 37 league appearances, leaving only Aleksandar Mitrovic (43) and Dominic Solanke (29) scoring on more occasions than the Chile international in the entire division.

This shows just how capable he is of putting away goalscoring chances, which is why having a player like the Leeds star, who delivered 90 crosses in total throughout the campaign, could be so beneficial for him and the team in general.

With a reported price tag of £20m, it would surely be an investment worth making for Victor Orta as the striker would then give Marsch the chance to form what could be a formidable attacking duo in his side that could fire them to the top half of the table.

The opportunity to play at a big club like Leeds and show what he’s capable of producing in the Premier League would undeniably be a tempting prospect for the player.

In other news: Big update emerges on mega-money summer deal, Leeds United supporters will be fuming

Wolves conclude their Premier League season with a trip to Liverpool this afternoon. The Reds can still win the league title if they beat Manchester City’s result against Aston Villa today.

What was on the whole an impressive first season under Bruno Lage for the West Midlands side, Wanderers have seen their campaign crash and burn over the final match weeks.

The Black Country outfit are winless in their last six matches, earning just two points, and it will be a tall task for them to leave Anfield with a result.

However, their chances will undoubtedly be bolstered with the inclusion of Daniel Podence in the starting lineup.

On the chalkboard

The £52k-per-week Portuguese winger has been out of action lately with a foot injury and made his first appearance since early April last weekend from the bench against Norwich City.

Goals have been at a major shortage under Lage this term with the Portuguese manager’s team scoring just 37 times in 37 matches, with only three sides scoring fewer.

This has particularly been the case of late with just four goals scored in Wolves’ last six matches.

By unleashing Podence, the West Midlands club can benefit from the 26-year-old’s attacking threat, with the winger scoring six goals and providing three assists in 30 appearances this term.

Labelled as a “mini Hazard” by teammate Pedro Neto, the Portuguese’s six goals make him the club’s joint-top scorer alongside Raul Jimenez, emphasising how little goal threat there has been from the Molineux outfit this season.

However, Podence’s inclusion will force Lage to make a decision as to who makes way for the 26-year-old with the likes of Jimenez, Neto and Hee-Chan Hwang given the nod last time out.

Although the former is Wolves’ top-scorer in the Premier League this season, he is without a goal in seven appearances whereas Neto is yet to score since returning from injury whilst Hwang has had some underwhelming performances of late.

Liverpool will undoubtedly boast the majority of possession which won’t necessarily be an issue for Wolves who pride themselves on their defending and will be able to remain compact at the back.

That also means that the visitors’ best chance of a goal will most likely come on the counter-attack where Podence can be a secret weapon for Lage and spoil the Reds’ party.

AND in other news, Wolves plotting bid for “special” £25m gem who “rules midfield”, Lage will love him…

Tottenham Hotspur and chairman Daniel Levy by extension have been sent a warning over star striker Harry Kane’s possible exit as Bayern Munich linger.

The Lowdown: Bayern contact made…

Speaking to Sky Sports recently (via football365), reliable Bundesliga journalist Florian Plettenberg shared a development in the Kane to Bayern saga.

Indeed, the Sky Germany reporter claimed that summer contact was definitely made between the Bundesliga giants and Kane’s camp – more specifically to Charlie Kane, the Spurs striker’s agent and brother.

Plettenberg also says, depending on performances, that Kane could become a ‘hot topic’ at the Allianz Arena over the next transfer window, and what’s more, the player himself can ‘really, really imagine’ joining Bayern.

The Latest: Whelan sends Kane warning…

Following on from this rumoured update, former Leeds striker turned pundit Noel Whelan has warned the Premier League side over selling Kane – calling it a potential ‘real step back’.

He explained to Football Insider:

“Keeping hold of Harry Kane is key to them becoming title challengers.

“If you get rid of an England captain, a top goal scorer – then that’s a real step back. He’s irreplaceable.

“It’s not something the Tottenham fans or players will want to see.

“It’s a really tough decision for the club, and a lot depends on this season for Kane’s future.

“He will be wanting to see how far they’ve come under Conte. If they win a cup this season or go far in the Champions League – that could decide the future for Kane.”

The Verdict: Untouchable…

Bar Son-Heung min, the England international stood out as a key player for Spurs last season after a tough start – not to mention their golden boot winner the season prior.

Losing a player with such fire power and menace in the final third would come as a real blow and there are arguably no replacements out there of a similar ilk – certainly not ones who wouldn’t cost a real premium.

Pieter Malan has had a tedious journey over the last decade, but is grateful to have hit the form of his life and make the trip to India

Saurabh Somani in Bengaluru30-Jul-2018There is one thing about Pieter Malan that ‘everybody’ who knows him is aware of – because he’s told them repeatedly. In 2008, in what was Virat Kohli’s biggest match in his life till then, he sliced Malan’s slower one to point in the Under-19 World Cup final, and was out caught for 19.India would still go on to beat South Africa by 12 runs in a rain-affected match, but Malan had a memory to cherish.”I started my spell and he (Kohli) hit me over cover for a six,” he remembers. “Then I took a bit of pace off and he got out at point, it was really a good catch. Now I tell everybody that I got him out. Everybody who knows me knows that I got him out. (laughs)”We played him a couple of months before the World Cup, they had come to South Africa as part of their preparation before the World Cup. We could see [how good he was] even back then, specially the way he played against spin, I have never seen anyone play spin the way he did. He hit bowlers effortlessly, wherever he wanted to. I don’t think we could have known how good he was going to become, but you could see that there was definitely something [special] there.”It might make for an even better after-dinner story than the fact that Malan is the eldest of three brothers who are all first-class players in South Africa, but have never played in the same side. Pieter will be 29 in a fortnight, Andre is 27 and the 22-year-old Janneman is the ‘most talented’ of the lot.Back in 2008, Pieter was among the rising talents in the Under-19 side that had the likes of Wayne Parnell, Rilee Rossouw, JJ Smuts and Reeza Hendricks among future internationals. In a tri-nation one-day series before the Under-19 World Cup, Malan had hit 71 and 57 against India. Things went a bit pear-shaped thereafter, and Malan’s expected rise never materialised. He was in a self-admittedly “dark place”, but didn’t give up on cricket. And though a national call-up is still distant, Malan has racked up 128 first-class games, to go with 84 List A appearances and 33 T20s.Two consecutive seasons with more than 1,000 first-class runs have given Malan a spot in the South Africa A side that is touring India, and he began with 51 against the Board President’s XI on Monday, sharing in an opening stand of 161 in Bangalore.”After that World Cup, things came little bit easy for me. I sorted of expected it to just continue that way,” Malan says. “But cricket tends to teach you some hard lessons if you take it too easy. I had to learn those lessons, work through it and become a better player than if that hadn’t happened.”It’s taken hard work but I feel it’s been worth it to get on this tour. Batting will never be a job for me, I love batting. It was dark times because you see that the guys you have played with go through the levels and you don’t go through at the same pace, but then everyone is on their own journey. I think once you realise that and try to focus on how good you can become – and not on somebody that you maybe played Under-19 with is now playing for South Africa – once you figure that out, you just put your head down and work and hope that the right things will happen.”Amongst those ‘right things’ could be the fact that the three Malan brothers will finally all play for the same side. So far, Pieter has played only against Andre and Janneman. “They never got the opportunities in Pretoria, so they went to study in Potchefstroom,” explains the oldest brother. “That’s when they started playing for NorthWest. But now I’ve managed to get both of them to Cape Town. Hopefully from this season, we’ll all play together. It’s tough playing against them. You want them to do well, but you don’t want them to beat you. You’re not happy that they’re out, but you’re also not happy that they’re beating you.”I’d say the youngest (Janneman) is the most talented. He just seems to score runs easily. Andre has the talent, but hasn’t got the opportunities that myself and the youngest have. But I’ve been told I’m the worst batsman in the family. My dad never played cricket. He left all the talent for us.”But while Pieter may well be the ‘worst’ batsman in the family, he can always have the bowling honours over his brothers because of his illustrious scalp a decade back. He hasn’t bowled much, or met Kohli since, but if he does, he knows what he’ll say. “If I had a chance I will definitely remind him of the dismissal,” he smiles. “But he won’t probably remember.”

Stats highlights from day two of the Australia-South Africa Test match in Perth

Gaurav Sundararaman04-Nov-20162 Number of times a team has been bowled out for a lower score than Australia’s 244 in a Test innings after a 150-plus partnership by the openers. Both these instances were by Zimbabwe: they had collapsed from 164 for 0 to 228 all out against West Indies in 2001, and from 153 for 0 to 236 all out against Sri Lanka in 2002. Incidentally, the lowest total Australia had put up after a 150-run stand by their openers before this was also against South Africa, 296 in 2011 at the Wanderers.86 Runs added by Australia’s last nine wickets. This is only the second instance of Australia’s last nine partnerships adding less than 100 in a home Test innings since February 1993 – in 2010 against England in Melbourne, they added 83. During the same period, there were 15 such instances for Australia in away Tests.1978 The previous time Australia lost their top five wickets while scoring less than 23 runs in a Test innings at home. Unlike in this match, Australia had started badly that occasion, hurtling to 24 for 5 in the first innings of the first Ashes Test at the Gabba. They had started well in this Test, reaching 158 for 0 before sliding to 181 for five.5 Number of 150-plus opening stands against South Africa in Tests in the last ten years. Including the 158-run stand between Warner and Shaun Marsh in this Test, the last-three such stands have been by Australia. Phillip Hughes and Shane Watson had added 174 in Johannesburg in 2011-12. Before that, Hughes and Simon Katich had added 184 in Durban in 2008-09.2 Batsmen who had made six consecutive fifty-plus scores in Tests against South Africa before David Warner. Warner joined Taufeeq Umar and Neil Harvey when he scored 97. Warner has three hundreds against South Africa and averages 91.42 against them in his last seven innings.184.61 Warner’s strike rate against Dale Steyn on the first day’s play. He scored 24 runs off just 13 balls including three fours and a six. However, Steyn came back strongly against Warner on day two, conceding just seven runs off 14 balls before dismissing him. While in South Africa Warner has made 117 off just 94 deliveries against Steyn and has been dismissed only once, in Australia the contest has been more even between the two: before this Test, Steyn had dismissed Warner twice in 93 balls, giving away just 59 runs.96 Warner’s batting average in Tests at the WACA – his best among venues where he has played more than one Test. Warner has scored 768 runs in Perth in just eight innings, including three hundreds and two fifties.4 Wickets by Vernon Philander in Tests in Australia before this. He had taken only four wickets from 67 overs at an average of 49.75 in two Tests. He returned figures of 4 for 56 from 19.2 overs in Australia’s first innings in this Test. This was also Philander’s first haul of three or more wickets in away Tests in 14 innings. Before this, he had taken 3 for 84 in the first innings of the Abu Dhabi Test in October 2013.2006 Previous instance of Hashim Amla scoring only one run in a Test match. It happened against India in Durban.

Mitchell McClenaghan talks about how being aggressive makes him stand out, why being a team man is important, and his World Cup and IPL journeys

Interview by Nagraj Gollapudi23-May-2015While doing a photo shoot for a calendar for Bachelor of the Year in 2013 you described your job as: “Captain wants me up, sends me in one direction and says please hit this guy or get him out.” Does that still hold true?
It is a philosophy that has worked really well with me. It is a role I do well. I like being aggressive. I like getting in people’s faces. You can change the game in many ways. At times you need to be aggressive and guys will make mistakes just from your presence.Like every New Zealander, on green wickets I used to just bowl medium pace, nibble it in, swing it. I must have been 17 or 18 when my dad said to me, if you want to play first-class and international cricket you need a point of difference. He said every bowler in the country can run in and swing the ball, but there are not enough guys who run in, bowl quick, bowl heavy and bowl bouncers. So it was his motivation that kind of pushed me to want to run in hard, try and bowl quick, and my game has developed from there.Who was the first batsman you hit?
I obviously do not go out to hurt people. But it is nice when a bouncer comes off. I bowled a good one to AB [de Villiers] before the World Cup. And he got out the next over. You bowl to hopefully put them on the back foot so that they make the wrong decision. I don’t use them to hurt people but I use them as a means of setting them up to change the game for me or the guy at the other end.

“I have been known to bite myself, bite my hand. A few of the Auckland boys have given me a bit of shit about that”

You also describe yourself as “ultra-competitive, aggressive, maybe a little bit crazy sometimes on the field”. Define crazy.
() I have calmed down a lot. I’ve got to admit it. I used to just lose the plot. I look at Dale Steyn. He just has the ability to deliver an amazing spell just after tea or towards the end of the day, when he bowls quicker than ever. I try and emulate that attitude when I play first-class cricket – you have got to get your adrenaline up, even if that is imagining that person at the other end as someone you absolutely hate. Or if the umpire gives a wide, even if it is obviously a wide, get yourself fired up and get angry at him, which makes you pumped up.Any examples of times where you did go crazy?
I have been known to bite myself, bite my hand. A few of the Auckland boys have given me a bit of shit about that. It seems to give me that adrenaline kick. When people get hit during a fight, their senses get heightened, so it is a bit of a weird one but it has worked for me to pump myself up for some spells at times.Tell us about the recent celebration where you hit the ground with the palm of your hand a few times having dismissed Sunrisers Hyderabad captain David Warner.
We identified a couple of plans for Shikhar [Dhawan] and Davy. One of them was to take a punt and go short. It was a massive wicket. I was just pumped. In the moment I just let it out. It turned the whole match, because if one of the guys bats through, they make a decent score and that is how they win their games. In T20, guys have got to play their shots. You just bowl a ball that you hope goes to a fielder or gets you a wicket. It could have gone for six too, but thankfully it was a wicket. You have to take the gamble sometimes.I don’t plan my celebrations. I am not a [Dwayne] Bravo – I don’t plan to do a certain dance if I get a wicket. It just comes naturally. It is just emotion. It is just living in the moment. It is just giving it everything for the team and being stoked that I can contribute.”I don’t use bouncers to hurt people but I use them as a means of setting them up to change the game for me or the guy at the other end”•AFPWhat is it about fast bowling that drives you?
I might not be the most economical bowler but with the way the game is going and how flat the pitches are around the world, there needs to be a point of difference. You need to have someone in your team who can run in and change the game without the ball swinging, seaming, turning. You need to have an aggressive bowler who can enforce himself. And whether that brings some wickets or that means they have to attack the guy at the other end, which give him the opportunity to take wickets…You have three three-wicket hauls this IPL (only Ashish Nehra and Mitchell Starc have more). Can you talk about the performance against Rajasthan Royals, where they were favourites with six overs to go, needing 64 runs with eight wickets in hand. You got three wickets in quick succession and altered the result.
That is what I have done for New Zealand: being able to come and change the game in an over. Against Rajasthan Royals, they were in a good position. We probably were a little bit below par with the runs we scored and we needed to take wickets. [Sanju] Samson was playing very well on the leg side and I thought I could take the pace off and move the ball away from him especially since the wicket was starting to hold. He still struck the ball well but it went straight to the fielder. So it is about the accumulation of different factors, trying to put the percentages in your favour, and it is about bowling the right ball which has the least chance of going over the fence, and hopefully guys would have to hit it in areas they are not comfortable with. Steven Smith’s wicket was similar. You only have to watch one minute of footage to know how good he is on the leg side. Since the wicket was holding a little bit, it was going to be hard to cut and I just pitched it outside off and moved it away and he was caught at third man.What happens mentally when you are hit for three fours in an over, as in the game against Delhi Daredevils when Shreyas Iyer took you on?
Frustration. I don’t want to get hit for fours. If I’m hit for a four, the first question I ask is: did I execute the ball the way I had planned to? If I executed the ball and he played a good shot, then I can go back to my mark with a clear mind. If I did not execute it, was it a bad ball? Yes. Then I know I just have to go back to the same plans. Those are two ways to deal with it and that comes to the same result, and it makes you think positively. Sometimes when you’re angry you can forget those things and a few times, definitely in the IPL and in my career, I have let that get to me. It might affect me for one spell, but next over, next spell, no dramas. It is about being able to process things and not let it affect you for the whole match.There have been a few occasions when catches have been spilled off your bowling during this IPL, like in the Daredevils match when Iyer was dropped at deep cover when two fielders ran for the same catch.
I don’t want to point fingers. I am more about the team and I would never say anything to mates. I am frustrated obviously in the moment because important catches of, for example, top-order batsmen can change games. If you look at most T20 stats, if you take three wickets in the first six overs, you generally win the game. Not many teams come back from three down. So catches that get dropped in the first six overs for me are the most important catches. I had a coach [Dermot Reeve] for a while whose philosophy on dropped catches was, if you go off at someone, they are not going to catch the next one and it affects the whole team. You have to just smile and get on with it.Your dot-ball percentage this IPL is pretty good: 42% (109 out of 258 deliveries).
But it doesn’t seem like that. I feel like I am getting hit for a lot of boundaries ().”The way Brendon McCullum approaches the game definitely suits my style of cricket”•Getty ImagesHow much has Shane Bond (previously New Zealand’s bowling coach, now with Mumbai Indians) played a role in your development?
We are different as fast bowlers. Shane was a swinger of the ball and a faster bowler than me. He is always trying to keep me positive, helping me maintain my focus by saying things like I am one of the hardest guys to get away for batsmen if I hit my areas. He is very good during our preparations, where everything is very detailed. He understands the way different guys bowl. He never says it is one way or the highway. He is very malleable and can actually understand everyone from every point of view. He has been a big asset to my career.Barring West Indies and Pakistan, you have at least a four-wicket haul in your first match against all other main international teams in ODIs. That is some feat.
Brendon’s [McCullum] style of captaincy definitely helps. He is very aggressive. He is a brilliant captain and has a great cricketing mind. The way he approaches the game definitely suits my style of cricket. You just have to look at the World Cup and what he can do to bring a team together, and the effect his captaincy has on the performance of any player, to understand him.You sat out for most of the World Cup except for one match. Did that teach you anything?
At the start of the tournament obviously I was disappointed as my record is pretty good. But in a tournament like a World Cup it comes down to what is best for the team and what is best keeping the conditions in mind. It is all about trying to win the World Cup. If you are upset or angry that you are not playing, that can filter through to the guys who are playing, and I don’t think that is very fair. You can’t show any sort of resentment. You have got to be ultra-positive. So if I wasn’t going to play, I had to find a way to contribute in some other way, so I was bowling in the nets trying to prepare the batsmen to face Mitchell Starc and the likes. At the end of the day it comes down to the team. It is not just those 11 guys, it is the whole squad. And if you are not together you are not going to go all the way into the tournament.How has Ricky Ponting (the Mumbai Indians coach) helped you?
He gives you confidence. He is a very positive man. To see his passion and his drive to win, even when he is not on the field, you can see why the Australian team was so successful during his reign. He is very inspiring. Even when Royal Challengers Bangalore scored 235 against us, he spoke for maybe 30 seconds between the innings and he had the guys believing that they could go out and chase the target.How big is this IPL final for you?
Outside the World Cup final, it doesn’t get any bigger. This is awesome. I’m buzzing. Win or lose, we have made a lot of strides this year as a team. Under Ricky and the support staff, there has been a real shift towards a team-first mentality, putting your body on the line for your mates on the field, putting in that extra little bit of effort. We are actually doing the little things right and we have made massive gains as an organisation in terms of playing for each other and not playing as individuals.