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Taking to Twitter, journalist Jacque Talbot of The Daily Star has made a big Tottenham Hotspur transfer claim involving Sporting Lisbon star Joao Palhinha.

The Lowdown: Spurs linked…

The Lilywhites and transfer chief Fabio Paratici have been linked with a move for the Portugal midfielder before as Spurs reportedly eyed a move in the 2021 summer window.

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Sporting’s mainstay, due to his form over the past year, has attracted major Premier League interest with the tough-tackling Palhinha also having impressed in flashes at Euro 2020.

Now, with the 26-year-old potentially on the move this year, it appears super agent Jorge Mendes is about to offer Spurs a chance to sign him.

The Latest: Talbot makes major claim…

According to the reporter, Palhinha ‘will be offered’ to Spurs, Newcastle, Man United and other Premier League clubs with an ‘agreement in place’ for Mendes to facilitate his exit.

Whilst believing Wolves are the ‘most likely’ to sign him, Talbot believes Paratici’s relationship with Mendes also gives Tottenham a chance.

He explained: “Sporting Lisbon’s Joao Palhinha – heard similar, will be offered to Man United, Spurs, Newcastle, but other Premier League clubs in the running/more likely.

“Agreement in place with Jorge Mendes to forge a move.

“Wolves the most likely, I’m told, but of course, Mendes does have a good relationship with Tottenham’s MD Fabio Paratici.”

The Verdict: Get it done?

Palhinha has a release clause in his Sporting deal worth around €60 million (£50m) according to Record but the player may well be worth that investment going by his stats.

Indeed, the colossal 6 foot 2 anchor has averaged an impressive 3.3 tackles per 90 in the Portuguese top flight this season (WhoScored) – marking himself out as a truly robust option for Spurs boss Antonio Conte.

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By comparison to Tottenham’s squad, that’s a far greater number than any Lilywhites player has managed, with Emerson Royal coming the closest but quite far off (2.6).

As Mendes now looks set to offer out Palhinha, Spurs and Paratici may well want to seriously consider a move, especially with Sporting’s manager having already called him a ‘special player’.

In other news: ‘Really hotting up’ – Ex-BBC man say Conte could now axe ‘monster’ Spurs star! Find out more here.

Michael Clarke has been handed the reins for the match against New Zealand in Perth © AFP

Michael Clarke will give Australia a view of the future when he leads the team in the Twenty20 international against New Zealand on Tuesday. Clarke, who is tipped to be the next Test captain, will step in for Ricky Ponting, who will miss the Perth match to allow the younger players to be on show.Clarke, 26, leap-frogged Adam Gilchrist and Michael Hussey – the move is sure to disappoint the local supporters – and he will be in charge of a squad including Adam Voges, Ashley Noffke and Shaun Tait. Gilchrist remained the vice-captain while Matthew Hayden was not picked.”It’s any young kid’s dream to captain their country, I’m stoked,” Clarke said at the SCG. Thoughts of being the new leader were the last things on Clarke’s mind when he heard the chief selector Andrew Hilditch, nicknamed Digger, wanted to speak to him.”When Digger gives you a call over the phone it’s normally for bad news,” Clarke said. “I thought ‘please tell me I’m not going to get dropped’. It certainly was a shock to me, I was a little bit speechless.”Hilditch said the appointment was made “to enhance the leadership skills of Michael Clarke to assure the long history of strong leadership of Australian cricket is continued into the future”. Hilditch also said the squad marked the start of preparations for the 2009 World Twenty20 in England. “It represents a clear indication that we will at all times be picking Twenty20 sides which will be specific to this form of the game,” he said.Voges, who made his ODI debut in February, came in as reward for his strong domestic form – he struck 180 in the current match in Hobart – while Noffke deserved his call after taking 24 Pura Cup wickets and scoring 490 runs. There was no spot for Ben Hilfenhaus, the out-of-form Tasmanian, but Tait was given a chance to continue his rehabilitation from a serious elbow problem.Clarke’s maturity since returning to the Test arena in 2006 impressed those around the team and he was Hussey’s deputy during last season’s Chappell-Hadlee Series until withdrawing with a hip injury. John Buchanan, the former coach, believes Clarke will be Australia’s next Test leader, Ponting has said he was the “obvious choice” and there were even predictions before his debut that he would captain his country.”This is a great opportunity, but there is no doubt Ricky is our leader and will be for a lot longer yet, but I’m certainly proud and honoured to be given this opportunity,” Clarke said. “For me it’s about trying to grab it with both hands and really enjoying every minute of it. I’ve spent a lot of time standing beside Ricky throughout my short career for Australia so I think I’ve learned a lot.”Clarke said he had consulted Mark Taylor, Steve Waugh and Ian Chappell since coming into the Australian team. “Any young player would be silly not to.” Next Tuesday it will be him giving the instructions.Australia squad Adam Gilchrist (wk), Brad Hodge, Michael Clarke (capt), Michael Hussey, Andrew Symonds, Adam Voges, Brett Lee, Ashley Noffke, Nathan Bracken, Stuart Clark, Mitchell Johnson, Shaun Tait.

‘It’s not about Greg Chappell or Sourav Ganguly; it’s about Indian cricket. And it’s about what a successful team needs to do’ © Getty Images

Click here for the full Greg Chappell interviewThe turnaround for India on the tour to South Africa began with the senior players forming a core group and initiating a process that involved carving up responsibilities – including mentoring juniors – among themselves and plotting what eventually turned out to be a historic win at the Wanderers, Greg Chappell, the India coach has revealed. That process began in the four-day tour match at Potchefstroom, a match Chappell called the “turning point”.Chappell was in relaxed mood the morning after the 123-run victory – which, he said, would “certainly stop or slow down” the public debate over the team management – as he opened up to journalists on topics as diverse as Sourav Ganguly’s return, Sreesanth’s emergence, and how the team had turned things around.On reaching Potch, where the management realised that everything from that point onwards had to come from the playing group. “It couldn’t come from the coaching group, we had done pretty much whatever we could do.” The players had a team meeting on their own, without the coaching staff, and talked about getting together and being stronger as a group. They started each day with a 20-minute session, with one player taking responsibility for it.”All of that has really made a difference”, Chappell said. ” I think Potch was the turning point, where Rahul was able to impress upon the senior players the need for all of them to take up responsibility.”One of those senior players was, of course, Ganguly, and Chappell said he was a mentally different batsman to the one dropped from the side 10 months ago. “He’s got a will and a desire to play for India that is very strong, it showed through in Potch and in this Test.”Asked where he stood on Ganguly, Chappell said: “He’s got a lot to offer. And we saw some of it in this Test match. Hopefully, from this point, we can go forward without this cloud hanging over the head that there are personalities involved. It’s not about Greg Chappell or Sourav Ganguly; it’s about Indian cricket. And it’s about what a successful team needs to do. And if he does the things we saw from him in this game, he can have a long stint.”Chappell revealed how, at one of the team meetings, Ganguly made a comment that he’d learnt a lot, that there’s more to life than just cricket. “Sourav’s comments were along the lines of courageous, gutsy play and I think it was Sachin that asked him what he meant bycourageous, gutsy play and he talked about how, in these 10 months or so,he’s been able to reassess a lot ofthings and cricket’s not the most important and only thing in life andthis has taken the pressure off him from a batting point of view.”That feeling, Chappell said, allowed Ganguly to bat with “some freedom thatperhaps he’s not had in his batting for a long time”.For all its drama, Ganguly’s batting was overshadowed by Sreesanth’s bowling, and even Chappell expressed some surprise at just how quickly he’d come good. “We recognised some things in Sree last year and we felt that he had whatit took to do that sort of thing. But realistically, you don’t expect itto happen in the sixth or seventh Test match. You might expect one spellhere or there, or one day here and there, but to do it forthree-and-a-half days…”The experts had said Sreesanth’s success was due largely to his seam position, and Chappell agreed. “I’ve never seen anyone do that as consistently. It wasremarkable how well the seam came out every time. The good bowlers do thatconsistently over periods and probably three or four times in an over.He was doing it six times an over, time after time after time.”He pointed to the flip side of that success, the “huge” emotionaland physical strain, and said Sreesanth had been suffering from diarrhoea yesterday. “I’m sure that it was as much from the emotional strain than anything he might haveeaten.”Chappell was asked whether Sehwag was doing the job required of a vice-captain in the early part of the tour (he was replaced when the Test squad was announced). “He was doing his job, but it’s not just two people. You need four or five. I can’t comment on the Sehwag thing as far as the selectors’ choice to change the vice-captain is concerned.”Asked whether he’d give an honest opinion on Sehwag as he’d done with Ganguly in Zimbabwe, Chappell replied: “I don’t intend to do my coaching through the media. Virender and I have got an ongoing dialogue all the time, as with all the players.”Chappell was asked whether the Test win had affected his plans for the World Cup. “There are slightly different requirements for Test cricket rather than one-day cricket but I think it at least gives us some options for things to think about andconsider. I think we have to look at what those options are and we have to facereality. At the end of the day, we’ve got to give ourselves a chance of performing well in the World Cup.”He said winning the World Cup was “a pie in the sky”; instead, a realisticgoal would be to get to the semifinals. “Then it’s a new series. Anyone canwin it from there.”

Lou Vincent believes New Zealand have done enough to prove Australia are beatable © Getty Images

Lou Vincent, the New Zealand opener, believes that New Zealand have helped shatter Australia’s aura of invincibility, following yesterday’s thriller in the second one-day match at Wellington.New Zealand’s heart-breaking two-run loss last night – in which electric fielding from Australia in the last over triggered a frenetic finale – has not deterred Vincent, who hit a rapid 71 to give his side a manic start as they began to chase a seemingly improbable 323 for victory. Speaking to stuff.co.nz, Vincent commented on what he saw as vulnerability in the Australians. “You put pressure on any good players and you can create opportunities,” he said. “You get a couple of full tosses and away you go.”Vincent was referring to Brett Lee, the fast bowler who conceded 85 runs, 19 of which came in the 49th over. Daniel Vettori, captaining New Zealand in the absence of the indisposed Stephen Fleming, echoed Vincent’s sentiments. “It was a pretty emphatic turnaround, I couldn’t ask for too much more in terms of the way we played Brett Lee,” Vettori said. “We talked about facing Lee and what we were going to do and guys went away and worked on their own things. Lou obviously decided to take it to them and he played exceptionally well.”Earlier, Andrew Symonds’ blistering 156 from 127 balls had taken Australia to a huge total, but spirited displays from New Zealand’s lower order took them agonizingly close. New Zealand’s final score of 320 was the fourth-highest second innings total in one-day international history.

Western Province Boland 242 and 371 for 7 beat Eagles 222 and 278 (Beukes 89, van Wyk 64, Kleinveldt 3-59, de Lange 3-62) by 113 runs
ScorecardWestern Province Boland beat the Eagles by 113 runs at Goodyear Park inBloemfontein to jump right back into contention for the SuperSport Series.Starting on Sunday at 89 for 3 the Eagles needed a further 303 runs towin. Jonathan Beukes and Morne van Wyk got them off to the perfect start, putting on 126 for the fourth wicket before van Wyk was caught behind off Conde Lange for 64. Eight overs later Beukes also edged de Lange to Andrew Puttick for a well-made 89. Loots Bosman tried to keep the target in sight with a quick 32, but the fall of three quick wickets left the Eagles in dire straits. At 244 for 8 it looked all over but Cliff Deacon and Roger Telemachus put their heads down, and took the score on to 277. But Telemachus was soon bowled by Charl Willoughby for 13, just one run short of scoring his 1000th first-class run. The end came when Victor Mpitsang was run out without scoring, leaving Deacon stranded on 33 and the Eagles all out for 278.Titans 213 and 325 for 7 dec (de Bruyn 149, Ngam 3-50) drew withDolphins 294 and 8 for 0
ScorecardThe Dolphins and the Titans played out to a tame draw at Kingsmead thanks to time being lost each day due to bad light and a magnificent match-saving innings of 149 for the Titans by Zander de Bruyn.de Bruyn’s innings lasted exactly seven hours and ensured that the Titans could not lose the game. When the declaration came at 325 the lead was 244 with the Dolphins in no position to chase. At 8 for no loss the light was offered and accepted, and the match was drawn.Warriors 217 and 236 for 8 (Peterson 65, Sodumo 55, Langeveldt 3-61) beat Lions 175 for 9 dec and 277 for 9 dec by 2 wickets
ScorecardThe Warriors nearly made a mess of chasing the 236 set by the Lions at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth but eventually claimed their first win of the season by a two-wicket margin. The chase did not start off too well as the Warriors lost five wickets for 55 before Robin Peterson and Abongile Sodumo got the innings back on track as they put on 107 for the sixth wicket before Peterson was bowled by Derek Crookes for 65.Sodumo followed on 214, having scored a valuable 55, as he played the anchor for a swinging Tyron Henderson. In trying to go for glory Henderson put his team at danger as he flashed and edged to the keeper after smashing 51 off 29 balls, leaving the Warriors at 227 for 8. In the end it was left to Monde Zondeki to take the Warriors to their first win of the season.

Australia held their nerve to win a humdinger against New Zealand in the TVS Cup. A crucial factor in this was the 70 runs Michael Clarke made. He scored quickly and did not allow the bowlers to dominate. He was especially good against Daniel Vettori, usually New Zealand’s best bowler in the subcontinent. A key factor was his footwork. To every ball, he moved his feet early and well. He looked to come onto the front foot as much as possible and was even happy to dance down the wicket and drive. No wonder then, that he took 20 runs off Vettori coming down the wicket.

Good use of the feet
How Clarke scored his runs against Vettori
Back foot	6
Front Foot	4
Stepped out	20

Another big performer on the day was Jacob Oram (81). He took New Zealand out of the woods after an early collapse, but could not ensure a win. When Oram came in to bat at number seven, New Zealand were in trouble at 86 for 5. They needed to rebuild, and Oram did just that. To begin with he concentrated on playing straight back down the ground, and hit 19 runs in the `v’ between long-on and long-off. After he got set, he targeted midwicket, and scored 25 runs in the zone – more than anywhere else. Ultimately, though, it was still not enough.

Jacob Oram’s Wagon Wheel
Thirdman	9
Point	5
Cover	14
Long-off	8
Long-on	11
Midwicket	25
Square leg	1
Fine leg	8

Opener Sridharan Sriram struck 78, giving Tamil Nadu the upper hand in their Ranji Trophy league match against Kerala at Chennai on Thursday.Kerala scraped past the 200-run mark thanks to the efforts of K Rejith Kumar, who converted his overnight 40 into 69 valuable runs. He was the ninth wicket to fall, with the score on 221. Indian pace sensation Tinu Yohannan was the last wicket to fall, leaving Kerala dismissed for 223.Tamil Nadu’s openers started slowly, with Sriram playing in his usual vein and fellow opener Sadagoppan Ramesh trying to play himself back into form. The usually fluent Ramesh made an unbeaten 41 off 188 balls, striking no boundaries in his knock. He lost Sriram with the score on 118, but took Tamil Nadu through to the close of play with a considerable advantage. He was accompanied by Hemang Badani, who was unbeaten on 4.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details3:01

Morrison: Taylor, Williamson knocks will give NZ confidence

That Kane Williamson scored a century at the WACA was no great shock, for at the Gabba Australia had found him harder to get out than grass stains on their whites. More surprising on day three in Perth was the remarkable form of Ross Taylor, who became the first New Zealander to score a Test double-hundred against Australia, and by stumps had a realistic chance of turning it into a triple-century.Taylor’s class has always been clear, as evidenced by a Test average in the mid-40s. But in Brisbane – indeed, for much of 2015 – he was so scratchy it was easy to forget how good he could be. A new city, a new pitch, a new man. At stumps on day three, Taylor had moved to his highest Test score and was still troubling the Australians. He was also troubling the scorers, running out of space to add to his 235 not out.It was a day of New Zealand domination. After the first six days of this series that might seem like a typo, but it’s not. On Saturday the match was evenly fought, and on Sunday New Zealand gave Australia a taste of their own medicine. And no bowling team likes to spend a full day in the Fremantle Doctor’s office. All Australia could manage were four wickets; New Zealand piled on 370 runs.The key was the 265-run partnership between Taylor and Williamson for the third wicket, which was New Zealand’s highest of all time against Australia for any wicket. Importantly for New Zealand, after Williamson fell for 166 in the middle of the day, Taylor batted on and on and on. He brought up his second Test double-century from his 254th ball, with a cover-drive for four off Mitchell Starc.Taylor celebrated with his trademark of sticking out his tongue, a move that has become less frequent over the past couple of years as the runs have dried up. But this was the Taylor of old. Along the way he became the fifth New Zealander to pass 5000 runs in Tests, and he surpassed his mentor Martin Crowe’s 188 as the highest Test score by a New Zealander against Australia.Most importantly, Taylor and Williamson gave New Zealand a chance in this match, and thus in the series. By stumps New Zealand had reached 6 for 510, trailing by just 49. Mark Craig was at the crease on 7, and if Taylor and the tail could drive New Zealand on to a handy lead on the fourth day, anything could be possible. That in itself is an achievement after conceding 559 in Australia’s first innings.It was a difficult day for Australia, who dropped chances and missed run-out opportunities. In the hour before tea, things fired up significantly when Mitchell Starc used a new ball to send down a searing spell, reaching 160.4kph with his fastest delivery and breaking Brendon McCullum’s bat with another yorker. But he had two catches dropped off his bowling, and was not rewarded for his work.McCullum was put down on 5 when he got a thick edge off Starc that flew to third slip, where Nathan Lyon spilled what he should have taken, and Taylor had a life on 137. He drove at Starc and Mitchell Marsh at gully got his hands to the ball but barely even slowed it down on its way to the third man boundary. By stumps, Taylor had punished Australia to the tune of nearly 100 more runs.For the first two sessions of the day only one wicket fell, that of Williamson, who miscued a pull off Josh Hazlewood and lobbed a catch up to midwicket. In the final session Mitchell Marsh bowled McCullum for 27, Starc finally had his first of the day when BJ Watling drilled a full toss to point for 1, and Doug Bracewell edged behind off Mitchell Johnson for 12.Bracewell had earlier lifted Lyon over the long-on boundary for six, and the fact that it was the first six of New Zealand’s innings – in the 116th over – was an indication of how purely Taylor and Williamson had played earlier. For most of the day Williamson had looked incapable of making an error; he put on a batting masterclass the equal of anything Australia had bowled against in recent years.Williamson was especially impressive whipping the ball off his pads through the leg side and his cover-driving was out of the textbook, keeping the ball along the ground wherever he played. He brought up his century with a cut behind point for four off Johnson from his 158th delivery, and his subdued celebrations were followed by resolute defence next ball, realising his job had only just begun.It was the second hundred in consecutive Tests for Williamson and his fourth this year; by the time he departed he was averaging 105.12 in Test cricket in 2015. Taylor’s recent record could hardly be more different. This was his first century of 2015, and since the end of the home series against West Indies in 2013 he had averaged, before this Test, 31.47.But at the WACA, Taylor looked back to his best. Of his 34 boundaries, 24 came through the off side, his cover-driving and driving straight down the ground a feature of his innings. Like Williamson, Taylor mostly kept the ball on the ground and gave Australia few opportunities. His hundred came from 158 deliveries, and by the close of play he had faced nearly double that amount.Both Taylor and Williamson had to deal with a 17-minute delay during the first session due to a farcical incident in which the groundstaff were unable to move the mechanical sightscreen. The time was added on to the end of the day to compensate. To Taylor, in the bigger picture of this enormous innings, 17 minutes was nothing.