Muarli Vijay

Murali Vijay has long been known for his infuriating inconsistency. But the way he took his time in the second Test against Australia in the morning session before kicking on in the next few sessions shows a lot of temperament on the Tamil Nadu batsman’s side. Especially considering the fact that he had had two failures in his home Test at Chennai and not many were convinced that he was good enough at the Test level.

Vijay is a stylish player at the worst of times and his 167 during his huge partnership with the ultra-dependable double-centurion Cheteshwar Pujara showed a lot of class, whether he was driving through the covers or lofting through mid-wicket and long-on. But the best thing was that he was decisive in his footwork, getting forward nicely while defending.

Vijay scored a second consecutive century (153) in the third Test while featuring in an astonishing 289 run-partnership with debutant Shikhar Dhawan, in which he played second fiddle. This innings was again full of strokes all around the wicket, which, combined with his solid defence, showed that he has finally found his feet in Test cricket.

Shikhar Dhawan

Dhawan has been in the shadows of fellow Delhi openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir for a long time and it was the explosive Sehwag whose place he was taking in the third Test. Dhawan was the player of the tournament in the 2004 U-19 World Cup, but didn’t make any impact in the limited chances he got in ODIs and T20Is.

No surprise then that there were protests from former players and fans both when he made the 15 ahead of Gambhir and Wasim Jaffer and when he was selected ahead of Sehwag for the third Test. So, how did Dhawan deal with the pressure of replacing one of the best openers India has ever had? By scoring the fastest ever century by a debutant!

Dhawan got 187 in just 174 balls in one of the most attacking debut innings of all time. Xavier Doherty, Nathan Lyon and Moises Henriques all took a hammering as Dhawan looked incredibly assured, especially through the covers. There was an element of drama to start the innings when Dhawan was technically out before facing his first ball. The ball slipped out of Mitchell Starc’s hand in his delivery stride onto the stumps with the batsman outside the crease at the non-striker’s end. But luckily for Dhawan, the Australians chose not to appeal. After this, he raced to 100 without a single lofted shot. He brought up his century with a 5 (this must be a first) as he dived into the crease for a single and ended up getting four overthrows.

Dhawan and Vijay have made sure that it isn’t going to be easy for Gambhir and Sehwag to get back into the Indian team, but the real test lies not in this series, but when India tour South Africa later this year. Both of them will have to prove themselves again there and show that they have the technique to handle the world’s best fast bowlers on seamer-friendly pitches.

Ed Cowan

Ed Cowan is a very different left-hander from Dhawan, but like most other Aussie players, has had his head on the chopping block during the current India series. Cowan is a batsman who likes to take his time and scores a lot of his runs through the Point region. But he has developed the bad habit of giving his wicket away after getting a solid start. So, it was good to see him get a hard-earned 86 in the first innings of the third Test and for a predominantly back-footed player, his front-foot play was impressive, especially his forward defence.

Cowan was an exchange student at Oxford Brookes University and made his first-class debut in England for Oxford UCCE against a Middlesex side including future England captain Andrew Strauss in 2003. He has played for Gloucestershire and Scotland and has now signed up to play for Nottinghamshire following the India series. So, it looks like he will be used to the English conditions when he travels to England for the Ashes to open with David Warner.

Nick Compton

Nick Compton has been around for some time in first-class cricket now and could have been forgiven for thinking that, at 29, the chance to pull on the England cap had passed him by. But a good season for Somerset and Strauss’ retirement gave him the opportunity to open with Alastair Cook on the spin-friendly pitches of India.

Compton, whose father Richard played first-class cricket in South Africa and whose grandfather is the legendary Denis Compton, didn’t do badly on that tour. But there were doubts whether he could get really big scores at the international level.

So Compton would have known that an average series in New Zealand might make the selectors look elsewhere for Strauss’ replacement. After the failure in England’s dismal first innings in the first Test, he must have known that the only a substantial knock would keep him in the team for the upcoming Ashes. That is exactly what he got, notching up a maiden Test century in the second innings of the same Test. He followed it up with another century in the first innings of the next Test. In the two innings, he shared partnerships with England’s two ‘Mr. Consistents’, Cook and Jonathan Trott, and displayed his brand of patient, off-side dominated batting to cement his spot for the Ashes.

Hamish Rutherford

Hamish Rutherford, 23, also comes from a cricketing family. Ken, his father, captained New Zealand in the 1980s and 90s and his uncle Ian played first-class cricket. Rutherford is the latest of a long list of players to be tried out for the opening spot in the New Zealand team.

But the left-hander wasn’t expected to take the playing field. It was the injury to New Zealand’s best opener Martin Guptill that ensured that Rutherford would made his debut in the first Test of the England series. He partnered veteran middle-order batsman Peter Fulton, who had been recalled to the national team after over 3 years, to open the innings.

A lot of people expected New Zealand to struggle against No. 2 ranked England, especially after their horrific series against South Africa. But after getting England all out for 167, New Zealand amazed the world with a brilliant 158-run opening partnership. Fulton did well to get 55, but it was Rutherford’s 171 which stole the show with some exquisite cover drives and excellent all-round batting. Amazing, considering that Rutherford was serving coffee in a café a year ago as he couldn’t get into the Otago team. So, it has been an unbelievable ascent to the highest level.

Though he scored just 23 and 15 in the second Test, it is clear that he has talent to last at the international level. If he can consolidate that promise with another couple of good innings, Rutherford Junior might just keep hold of the opening spot for a long time and should manage to get more than the 46 caps Rutherford Senior managed.

These five openers have a tough year ahead. India’s next Test series – an away-series against South Africa – is a long way off. Vijay and Dhawan need to stay in form to make the trip to South Africa.

With another New Zealand-England series coming up in England in a couple of months’ time, Compton and Rutherford get another chance to showcase their talent. Compton and Cowan could line up on either side in the first of the year’s two Ashes in England in June and maybe in county cricket before that.

Without doubt, all of them have their work cut out.

Follow me on Twitter @AshwathSampath1

There’s something about left-handers.  How often we hear about the elegance of a left-handed batsman, the angled serve of a left-handed tennis player and a left arm bowler’s ‘natural angle’ away from a right-handed batsman.

There have been many left-handed players in different sports who have had brilliant careers. These are my selections for the top 5 left-handers in sports.

Of course, as with any top-5 list, it is inevitable that some people will disagree with my selections. And as I have considered multiple sports, it’s difficult to actually compare the players. The Top 5 players are not in any particular order.

SIR GARFIELD SOBERS

When you talk about the top all-rounder in the world, there really is only one candidate. Everyone will tell you Sir Garry Sobers could bat as well (and as elegantly) as anyone else on the planet. But, he was almost as good with the ball in hand. He debuted for the West Indies as a left-arm orthodox spinner and in his career, he also bowled left-arm chinaman and could bowl pretty fast with the new ball. In addition, he was an excellent fielder.  That’s a complete all-rounder for you — world-class batsman, a man extremely proficient in every type of bowling possible to a left-armer and a fantastic fielder. Is there anyone you can compare Sobers to? Absolutely not!

Stats don’t usually lie, and just a glance at Sobers’ record is enough to prove that he is the greatest left-hander cricket has ever seen —  a whopping 8032 runs from 93 Test matches at an average of 57.78 and a highest score of 365* in addition to 235 wickets with a best of 6/73.

Sobers is also known for being the first batsman to hit six sixes in an over, a feat he accomplished while captaining Nottinghamshire in county cricket. Sir Gary was 3-4 players bundled into one and any professional cricket team would give their 3 best players to have him at his best in their side.

ROD LAVER

Winning all four Grand Slams in the same year is as rare as a blue (or even a green) moon. After Don Budge, Laver was the first person to achieve this. And incredibly, he managed it not once, but twice! The first time he won all four majors in the same year was as an amateur in 1962. When the Open Era began in 1968 and professionals were allowed to participate in Grand Slams for the first time, he repeated the feat in 1969. No male player since has managed to win the French, US, Australian Opens and Wimbledon in the same year (though 2 female players – Margaret Court and Steffi Graf have, in 1970 and 1988 respectively). This shows just how outstanding a player Rod Laver was – he achieved something which Borg, McEnroe, Connors, Becker, Edberg, Lendl, Sampras, Federer, Nadal and all the other great players over the decades couldn’t!

Laver also won the Professional Grand Slam in 1967 – winning the US Pro, Wembley Pro, French Pro and the Wimbledon Pro.

In addition to his 11 grand slam singles titles (and 9 professional majors), the Australian also won 6 men’s doubles and 3 mixed-doubles slams in his illustrious career.

 WASIM AKRAM

Sir Don Bradman himself called Wasim Akram the greatest left-arm bowler ever, and it’s hard to disagree with the Don.  There are so many bowlers who either bowl fast but aren’t accurate or are slightly slower, but deadly accurate. Akram didn’t belong to either of these categories. He was fast, could swing the ball both ways and had an almost unplayable inswinging yorker. Add to this his reverse swing and a good bouncer and slower ball and you have a complete fast bowler. His fearsome opening bowling partnership with Waqar Younis in the 1990s and early 2000s is probably as good as any fast bowling partnership before or since.

He ended his career with 414 Test Wickets and 502 wickets in ODIs (the second highest number of ODI wickets after Muttiah Muralitharan), 1042 first-class wickets, and a world-record 881 wickets in List A cricket. Akram was also a more than decent batsman. He probably underachieved with 2898 runs at 22.64 in Tests and 3717 runs at 16.52 in ODIs, but managed 3 Test centuries and an outstanding highest test score of 257 not out. (Yes, that’s higher than Sachin Tendulkar’s highest score!).

Midway through his career, the Pakistani was diagnosed with diabetes, but still continued to play cricket successfully at the highest level.

 RAFAEL NADAL

In recent years, we have seen 3 men absolutely dominate tennis — Federer, Djokovic and Nadal.  Nadal’s biggest strengths are his amazing defensive skills, tenacity and his vicious forehand. No other player chases down a lost cause as often and as successfully as this Spaniard, who turned 19 during his first Grand Slam win at the French Open in 2005. Since then, ‘Rafa’ has added another 10 Grand Slams and an Olympic Gold (in 2008) to his trophy cabinet (as of October 2012).

Nadal has always played a game of patience, hitting shot after shot from the base line, grinding the opponent down. His incredible stamina has won him a lot of points, but has left him injured quite a bit in recent times.

Even then, Nadal should have at the very least 4-5 years ahead of him and should be able to win quite a few more Grand Slam titles.

Though Nadal was initially seen as a clay-court specialist, he has since improved tremendously in all the other surfaces to win Wimbledon twice, the Australian and US Opens once each and of course, 7 French Opens, thus becoming only the seventh man ever to win a career Grand Slam This is the reason he makes this Top 5 list ahead of greats like John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors.

LIN DAN

There is no doubt that Lin Dan deserves to be on this list. Ask any badminton player and it is highly probable that he/she will say that this Chinese left-hander is the greatest player ever.

Lin has a destructive smash, a deceptive drop shot and an ability to hit outrageous angles. These skills, coupled with his speed on court means that he doesn’t have any appreciable weakness.

So, it’s no surprise that ‘Super Dan’ has won every major title possible at the highest level in badminton. Apart from defending his Olympic Gold from 2008 in 2012, he has also won the World Championships, the Asian Games, the All-England Championships, the Asia Championships, the World Cup, the BWF Super Series Masters Finals and the Asian Games. In addition, he has also spearheaded China’s wins in the Thomas and Sudirman Cups.

THE ONES WHO JUST MISSED THE CUT:

BRIAN LARA

It was  very difficult to leave out Brian Lara from this list and I’m sure a lot of people will disagree with me on that. But, it was a toss- up between Lara and Wasim Akram as there was place only for 2 cricketers. I chose Akram because in addition to his exceptional bowling skills, he was also a pretty handy batsman. Lara, on the other hand, isn’t someone people associate with bowling (though he has all of 4 ODI wickets!).

JOHN McENROE

John McEnroe was a great player, no doubt about that. His rivalries with Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl are the stuff of which legends are made. Apart from being a fantastic singles player, the controversial American also managed to win 9 doubles Grand Slams and a mixed doubles Grand Slam as well. The reason I couldn’t fit him into my Top 5 is despite his 3 Wimbledons and 4 US Opens, he never won an Australian Open or French Open singles title.

JIMMY CONNORS

Jimmy Connors was every bit as volatile as McEnroe and they faced each other quite regularly at the business end of Grand Slams at one time. Connors has won 109 ATP tournaments, which is a record. He was also only the second man in the Open Era (after Laver) to win 3 Grand Slams in a year. He ended up with 8 Grand Slam titles. But despite all the records, he doesn’t find a place in the Top 5 because he, like so many other great American players, couldn’t win the French Open.

Follow me on Twitter: AshwathSampath1

]]> http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/10/14/top-5-left-handed-sportsmen/feed/ 20 201504147 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/07/09/andy-murray-turns-emotional-on-his-fb-wall/ http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/07/09/andy-murray-turns-emotional-on-his-fb-wall/#comments Mon, 09 Jul 2012 11:40:41 +0000 Ashwath Sampath http://www.sportskeeda.com/?p=453711  

DISCLAIMER: This is a fake FB wall. Its contents are  fictitious and are not meant to offend anyone in any way.

Yesterday, we saw Spain and Portugal play out a 0-0 draw. Neither side created too many chances (though Portugal looked a bit more likely to score), so it was no surprise that the match went to a penalty shootout, the second of the tournament so far.

Now, in a penalty shootout, the list of players nominated to take penalties has to be given to the referee before the shootout starts.

As a manager, the quality you’d look for while choosing a penalty taker is not so much a player’s ability to kick the ball with power and accuracy, but his ability to handle pressure (any professional should be able to score from 12 yards without pressure!) This is the reason we saw the most experienced players take penalties yesterday, including all the playing centre-backs on both sides. Young strikers and wingers like Pedro, Nelson Oliveira and Jesus Navas missed out as it was probably felt they couldn’t handle the huge pressure.

The order of penalty takers is absolutely vital. It’s all very well keeping your best player for the high-pressure 5^th penalty (as Portugal did with Ronaldo), where he might have to score to either win the game for his team or keep the team in the game. But often, it doesn’t even reach the last penalty (for example, yesterday), so is it such a good idea giving your best player the last penalty?

Absolutely not! The first one is the most important one. If you miss the first penalty, and the other team scores, you’re always playing catch-up. So, Ronaldo, without doubt Portugal’s best player, should have taken the first penalty, and put Portugal one up after Xabi Alonso had seen his penalty saved by Rui Patricio. Instead, Joao Moutinho took the first penalty, and Casillas saved it to keep it 0-0.

So, is this an indication that Cristiano Ronaldo, normally so (over)confident, was actually nervous? Was he scared of missing? Remember, he missed a penalty against Bayern Munich in the Champions League semifinal recently. But, he has had a good tournament so far, so that shouldn’t have worried him. Far more likely, I think, is that he wanted to take the winning penalty as he would get most attention that way. But it was not to be.

The shootout also had an additional bit of drama. Bruno Alves, Portugal’s centre-half, took the long walk to the penalty spot to take his team’s 3^rd penalty. But Nani ran after him, indicating that it was actually his turn. While Nani did score, Alves hit the post when he eventually took the 4^th penalty. The pressure had obviously got to him.

Before that, Sergio Ramos scored his penalty with a chip. It wasn’t as beautiful as Andrea Pirlo’s outrageous penalty against England, but was impressive coming from a player who took a horrible penalty against Bayern Munich in that same semifinal as Ronaldo (blasting it over the bar). That showed the defender’s character.

So it was Cesc Fabregas who got the chance to put Spain in the final with his penalty. He did, scoring off the post, prompting Ronaldo to smile wryly, as he never got to take a penalty. Will we see any more penalty shootouts this tournament? What do you think?

In Part 2, I took a look at players from Bolton Wanderers who I felt could do well in the Premier League next season if signed by one of the Premier League teams. Who are these players, you ask? Find out by clicking http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/06/03/relegated-clubs-a-treasure-trove-of-players-part-2-bolton/ !

Now, we have come to the final part, This time, let’s visit the team whose relegation was confirmed a full three weeks before the final day– Wolverhampton Wanderers; and see which of their players might be playing in the Premier League next season.

MATT JARVIS

If you asked me who Wolves’ best player is, I wouldn’t take more than a second to give you the answer—Matt Jarvis.

Jarvis has been amazingly consistent even as most of the players around him have struggled. He is predominantly right-footed, but is pretty comfortable with his left foot as well. This has allowed him to play on the left wing for Wolves, from where he often cuts in and shoots with devastating effect, or gets past the full-back and crosses. Jarvis’s crossing is very good and his pace, while not electric, is more than adequate.

All the above qualities made former England manager Fabio Capello give Jarvis his international debut last year. Though he hasn’t been picked for the national team since then, the winger is only 26 and should get at least a few more England caps in the coming years.

Suitable for: Stoke City, Everton, Norwich, Liverpool.

KEVIN DOYLE

Doyle has been around for quite some time now. The striker was hugely popular at his previous club Reading and his performance during his 4-year stay there tempted Wolves to pay a joint club record fee of £6.5 million for his services.

Doyle isn’t very tall for a striker, but his aerial ability is quite decent. His best attributes though, are his steely determination and his excellent work ethic. Some complaints against him are that he lacks a bit of pace and sometimes drops too deep into midfield. Despite these weaknesses, the Irish international is a good finisher and will be a signing worth making for a mid-level Premier League club. He has already said he doesn’t want to go back to Reading, so it will be interesting to see where he goes this summer.

Suitable for: Sunderland, Fulham, Everton, Liverpool, Aston Villa.

STEVEN FLETCHER

The Scottish striker is a natural finisher. If his team mates can get crosses into the box, Fletcher, with his excellent positioning and anticipation, will more often than not get on the end of them. Once he gets to the end of crosses, he is a reliable goalscorer, either with his head or his favoured left foot. As former Wolves manager Mick McCarthy said when Fletcher was signed, he is a good player technically as well.

The Scottish forward publicly criticised his national team manager Craig Levein about 18 months ago and despite being selected to play in February 2011, he apparently sent a text message saying “Tell him (Levein) that I don’t want to play (for Scotland)” So it’s hardly a surprise that he hasn’t been selected for Scotland by Levein since that incident and it looks unlikely that he’ll get back into his national team colours any time soon.

Even though his national team prospects look bleak, he will surely be in demand in club football.

Suitable for: Fulham, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Arsenal.

WAYNE HENNESSEY

We’ve seen one Englishman, one Irishman and one Scot so far and now it’s time for a Welshman.

Goalkeeper Hennessey was released as a 16-year old by Manchester City’s Academy and has since been at Wolves, graduating from the Academy into the first team (though he did have 2 loan spells at Bristol City and Stockport County in between).

The blond keeper is 6’ 5” tall and as a result has an excellent reach, which is very advantageous for a goalkeeper. He is a good shot-stopper and has had a decent season even though Wolves got relegated.

Hennessey is only 25 and already has nearly 40 Wales caps to his name. So, the future looks bright for him, whether or not he leaves Wolves this summer.

Suitable for: West Ham, QPR, Tottenham, West Brom

JAMIE O’HARA

Jamie O’Hara spent time at the academies of North London rivals Arsenal and Tottenham before signing a senior contract at Tottenham. However, his first team appearances were limited at Spurs and after several loan spells the last of which was at Wolves, he moved to Wolves permanently in 2011.

O’Hara is a technically sound midfielder who has an eye for a pass even if he is inconsistent sometimes. The ex-Engalnd Under-21 player made just 19 league appearances as he struggled with injury last season, but ended the season on a high by getting married to former Miss England and Big Brother contestant Danielle Lloyd.

Suitable for: Swansea, Norwich, West Brom, QPR

That brings us to the end of the 3-part series on players from the relegated teams who I think might be good options for the Premier League teams to sign. Do you agree with the players I selected from the 3 teams? Or do you think there are some other players who deserve to be part of any of the 3 articles? Leave a comment and let me know!

In this part, let’s look at the team that got relegated on the final day this season – Bolton Wanderers – and their players who can make an impact in the Premier League next season if given a chance.

Martin Petrov

This Bulgarian left-winger might be 33 now, but still has a lot of pace. Petrov is a classical winger who looks to beat the opposing full-back, get to the byline and cross with his favoured left foot. His crossing and corner delivery have been of high quality throughout his career and last season was no exception. Add to this his ability to shoot from a distance, take direct free kicks and penalties and you have a complete attacking player.

We might not see too much interest in Petrov though because of his age and injury history. But, whichever club decides to take a chance on him will get an excellent player, as long as he stays injury-free.

Suitable for: Aston Villa, Fulham, Norwich, Everton, QPR

Ivan Klasnic

Ivan Klasnic is an out-and-out striker. He might not do too much running, but if your team has half a chance in the penalty box, you want it to fall to Klasnic. That’s the kind of player he is: a fox in the box who knows exactly where the goal is.

The Croatian has had an interesting history. He had a liver transplant while at former club Werder Bremen, but got back to playing in a year. Since then, he’s moved to Nantes and then Bolton.

Klasnic’s stats at Bolton aren’t probably as impressive as they should have been. But a possible reason is that he has often been a substitute.

The striker’s contract has just expired, meaning he is a free agent and can move without a transfer fee. He’s a gamble worth taking in my opinion!

Suitable for: West Brom, Reading, Fulham, Swansea, Wigan, Norwich

Nigel Reo-Coker

Reo-Coker was the first player to leave Bolton after their relegation as he activated a clause in his contract which allowed him to leave for free if Bolton got relegated.

Reo-Coker is a former England U-21 captain whose main strengths are his stamina and work rate. He is a box-to-box player who does, however, commit a lot of fouls. Reo-Coker has captained every side he has played for so far – Wimbledon, West Ham, Aston Villa (at times) and Bolton (at times). So, he obviously does have leadership skills.

Overall, Nigel Reo-Coker might not be of international quality, but is still a pretty decent signing.

Suitable for: Arsenal, Fulham, Everton, West Brom

Jussi Jaaskelainen

The Finnish goalkeeper has served Bolton for an amazing 15 years, making over 500 first team appearances since joining in 1997.  There have been many competitors for the goalkeeping place at Bolton since then, but Jaaskelainen has seen them off one by one. However, he did finally lose his place last season to the impressive Hungarian Adam Bogdan and this may be why he has chosen not to renew his contract.

The Finn has no doubt been one of the best and most consistent goalkeepers in the last 10 years and his reflexes and shot-stopping abilities are as good as anybody else’s in the business.

Apparently, there has already been some interest from West Ham (Does that mean Rob Green is leaving the Hammers?) and there could be other clubs interested as he is a free agent.

Suitable for: West Brom, West Ham

Lee Chung-Yong

The South Korean international is, without doubt, one of the most exciting players to come from his country. I actually think he is even better than ex-captain of South Korea, Park Ji-Sung.

The right winger is extremely difficult to play against, mainly because of his quick feet and his ability to do the unexpected. Most of last season, Lee was absent due to injury and this has definitely contributed to Bolton’s relegation.

However, it might be difficult for anyone to sign the winger as it has emerged that he signed a ‘secret’ contract extension last August.

Suitable for: Liverpool, Arsenal, West Ham, Everton, Newcastle

Chris Eagles

Chris Eagles is a very impressive wide player who has always been a bit underrated. His composure and first touch have always been excellent. He hasn’t created as big an impression at Bolton as at his previous club Burnley, but he is still a very gifted player who could flourish if given a chance in the Premier League next season.

At 26 years of age, the former Manchester United man is nearing his peak and any club that buys him will find themselves with an excellent performer who is very sure of himself while in possession of the ball.

Suitable for: Fulham, Everton, Wigan

The concluding part (Part 3) will focus on Wolverhampton Wanderers’ players.

Whenever a team gets relegated, it not only needs to play in a lower division, but also ends up losing all its best players. In this 3-part series, I present the players from the 3 relegated teams (Blackburn, Bolton and Wolves) who I think could be good signings for the other Premier League clubs.

Let’s start off with Blackburn in the first part. So, which of Blackburn’s players could end up playing in the Premier League next year?

Martin Olsson

The Swedish left-back Martin Olsson, has established himself as Rovers’ first-choice left-back in recent times. Olsson, whose twin Marcus plays for Blackburn too, will also be seen in the Euro 2012 later this month. Olsson is an attack-minded full-back who can also play as a winger. His main strength is his pace, which he uses to good effect for both defence and attack (he is a decent dribbler as well). However, these attacking instincts can sometimes leave a hole in the team’s defence.

With the dearth of quality left-footed left-backs in the Premier League and the added exposure he will get in the Euros, I expect Olsson to get a lot of interest this summer.

Suitable for: Chelsea, West Ham, West Brom, Stoke City, Newcastle

David “Junior” Hoilett

The next player on the list is the one whose contract is just about to end. Striker David Hoilett, more often known as ‘Junior’ Hoilett, had an excellent season at Blackburn and I’m sure we’ll see a lot of clubs queueing up for him. The problem with Hoilett is that he is incredibly selfish. You can always expect him to shoot instead of passing to a player in a better position. But, there’s no doubt that this 22-year old has decent pace and dribbling skills in addition to his tremendous confidence in himself.

Suitable for: Aston Villa, Tottenham, Wigan, Norwich

Paul Robinson

If you’re a Premier League club looking for a proven top-division goalkeeper, you need look no further than Blackburn’s captain Paul Robinson. Robinson is an excellent shot-stopper even though he can be a bit error-prone sometimes. But, for me, the former Leeds and Tottenham man is definitely a keeper worth signing as his experience (he has played more than 450 games so far including 41 for England) should be invaluable for any team that buys him.

Suitable for: West Brom, Chelsea

Scott Dann

A year ago, Dann was seen as a future England international after a brilliant season with Birmingham, where he formed a superb defensive partnership with Roger Johnson. However, Birmingham got relegated and Dann moved to Blackburn. Though this season hasn’t been as good as the last one and the England call up hasn’t come yet, the ex-Walsall man is only 25 and should get his chance if he plays to his potential.

The 6’ 2” defender is excellent in the air and though successive relegations with two different clubs would’ve been tough to take, Dann, in my opinion, is an investment worth making for any mid-level Premier league club.

Suitable for: Liverpool, Sunderland, QPR, Arsenal, West Ham, Swansea

Morten Gamst Pedersen 

Pedersen has been so good for Blackburn over the years that with every transfer window, I expected him to depart. But he’s still here, having made 260 league appearances since joining the club eight years ago in 2004 and apparently intends to stay on at Rovers despite the relegation. However, if he does decide to leave, he will definitely find some takers in the top division.

The Norwegian international winger is a set-piece specialist and is as good taking corners as free kicks. Pedersen also has a very decent long throw in his locker.

Suitable for: Stoke City, Fulham, Everton

Steve N’Zonzi

N’Zonzi, a former French under-21 international, is a defensive midfielder. At 23, he is seen as a prospect for the French national team. He is a tough tackler and has caught the eye playing in front of the back four for Rovers this season. N’Zonzi has apparently been scouted by Chelsea and Arsenal as well as Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala and will no doubt have plenty of offers in the summer. He could well be the person who makes Blackburn the most amount of money if he is sold.

Suitable for: Arsenal, Fulham, Everton, Aston Villa

Aiyegbeni Yakubu

One and a half years ago, Yakubu was struggling so much that he was loaned out to the Championship side Leicester by his then club Everton. Even though he got 11 league goals for Leicester from 20 Championship games, not many people expected him to make much of an impact in the Premier League again when he signed with the Riversiders. But, he has certainly made an impact this season, being the club’s top scorer with 17 league goals. Yakubu is a player who uses his strength to hold up the ball and bring other players into the game besides his obvious goal scoring ability.

Suitable for: Fulham, West Brom, Wigan, Aston Villa.

Stay tuned for Part 2. Coming shortly!

Robin Van Persie has been, without doubt, the best player in the Premier League this season. The Dutchman has scored more goals than anybody else in the English top flight (with 30 goals in the Premier League alone and 37 overall) and has almost single-handedly given Arsenal a chance to get (in my opinion) a pretty undeserved top-4 finish.

Will he stay at Arsenal? That’s the question everyone is asking. The striker is scheduled to have talks with the club to extend his contract beyond 2013.  But, will it be in his best interests to stay? Or will he look to move to one of Europe’s elite clubs? Let’s take a look at 5 clubs which have been linked with the Netherlands international.

1. Juventus– Reports have emerged today linking the Gunners captain to new Italian champions Juventus. In fact, their general director Giuseppe Marotta has been talking about Van Persie to Italian website ‘Calciomercato’. 

‘Van Persie is a great player. He is a complete player and would be useful to any team. But he still has one year left in his contract with Arsenal.’ says Marotta. However, the general director has spoken about Gonzalo Higuain and Luis Suarez too to the same site. He has also indicated that Marco Borriello’s loan deal may be made permanent.

ODDS: 5 out of 10. Juve already have two Italian international strikers in Fabio Quagliarella and Alessandro Matri to add to their Montenegran star Mirko Vucinic. If Borriello joins permanently, it seems unlikely that van Persie will join.

2. Barcelona– Barcelona generally play in a 4-3-3 formation, with Messi and Pedro as wide attackers and David Villa, who has been injured for some time, as the main striker. But he will be back before next season. So it is difficult to see van Persie making a move to the Camp Nou.

ODDS:  4 out of 10. I just can’t see Barcelona selling Villa or Pedro and with Alexis Sanchez also available, the Spanish club will probably make a move for a slightly lesser-known striker than van Persie.

3. Real Madrid– Barcelona’s rival and this year’s La Liga winner Real Madrid is another possible destination. Gonzalo Higuain has been brilliant in the last few years for Real, but he has (like van Persie) been linked with clubs like Manchester City and Juventus recently. That may create an opening for van Persie.

ODDS: 7 out of 10. If Higuain does leave, van Persie will be the perfect replacement to play alongside the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.

4. Manchester City– Manchester City always seem to be interested in Arsenal players. With ex-Gunners Samir Nasri, Gael Clichy and Kolo Toure already in the team, they might very well add another one to the list. The futures of controversial duo Mario Balotelli and Carlos Tevez are still unclear; and Edin Dzeko’s form has dipped alarmingly in the second half of the season. This might tempt City manager Mancini to buy the Arsenal striker.

ODDS: 8 out of 10. Sergio Aguero might well be the only striker to stay next season, with Emmanuel Adebayor and Roque Santa Cruz, who have been out on loan, also seemingly unwanted. If Tevez and Balotelli are sold, expect City, with all their money, to make a bid for van Persie. I wouldn’t be surprised if they offered Dzeko to Arsenal as a make-weight.

5. AC Milan– AC Milan have two proved goalscorers- Alexandre Pato and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Antonio Cassano is back after heart surgery and veteran Filippo Inzaghi and Brazilian Robinho are also there at present . Will they really bid for the Dutchman?

ODDS: 5.5 out of 10. If Pato is sold, there might be a chance of van Persie joining Milan as Inzaghi is close to retirement and Cassano has only recently returned to first-team football.

6. Stay on at Arsenal – The other option is for van Persie to remain at Arsenal. Lukas Podolski has been signed for the next season and this may convince van Persie to stay on for one more season. Podolski has proved himself in the Bundesliga and in international football and will take some of the burden of scoring goals off the left-footed van Persie.

ODDS: 8.5 out of 10. Van Persie will be close to 30 when his contract ends at the end of the next season. So, if one of the above teams comes calling, he may well be tempted. Having said that, I think it is very likely that he will see out his contract and move on as a free agent next year.

As the 3-test series between Australia and West Indies draws to a close, a number of players from Australia (and Darren Bravo from the West Indies) will fly in to India to take part in the IPL. Let’s look at the players coming in and the difference they can make to their respective teams.

Chennai Super Kings- The defending champions will be further strengthened by the arrival of Michael Hussey and Ben Hilfenhaus. Hussey, who has been a very important player for the Super Kings in the past, might however find it difficult to get into the first team this time around with Francois Du Plessis in the form of his life. Hilfenhaus will have to battle for a spot in the team with fellow Aussie Doug Bollinger and Nuwan Kulasekara.

Rajathan Royals- The Rajasthan Royals, who have depended a lot on Ajinkya Rahane, Brad Hodge and Owais Shah, will be delighted to welcome the services of Shane Watson. The allrounder should take his place at the top of the order, which will mean that either captain Rahul Dravid or orange cap holder Rahane will have to be moved down the order. The excellent Kevon Cooper will probably have to sit out for Watson.

Pune Warriors- The Pune Warriors had a great start to the season, but have since struggled. So, they will be delighted that Australian captain Michael Clarke is going to join their team shortly. Clarke doesn’t play international twenty-20 cricket, but should find himself in the starting XI, most probably in place of Marlon Samuels.

Delhi Daredevils- As Kevin Pietersen gets ready to leave, the current leaders welcome the explosive opener David Warner into the team. Jayawardane will most certainly move into the middle order to allow Warner to open the innings with captain Sehwag. Sehwag and Warner, if they play to their potential, constitute what is probably the most exciting opening partnership in the world. So, Delhi will be pleased to have Warner even though Pietersen’s absence will create a hole in the middle order with Ross Taylor out of form.

Deccan Chargers- The Deccan Chargers are languishing at the bottom of the table with one win out of seven as Darren Bravo joins the squad. However, Dwayne Bravo’s younger brother may have to wait before he can play as Cameron White produced a long-overdue Man Of The Match performance against Pune while allrounder Daniel Christian is also waiting in the wings.

Kings XI Punjab- The Mohali-based team will be looking to Ryan Harris to really create a difference. The team have really struggled with their bowling with Praveen Kumar taking just 2 wickets in 8 matches. Harris has pace and bounce and could just be the person to change the fortunes of the 8th placed Punjab team.

Kolkata Knight Riders- James Pattinson got himself injured during the West Indies series and it isn’t clear if he will be available to play for the Kolkata team. However, the Knight Riders already have another Australian fast bowler in Brett Lee and shouldn’t be affected too much.

Royal Challengers Bangalore- The Bangalore team will have no new players coming in. In A.B.De Villiers, Chris Gayle and Tilakaratne Dilshan, they have 3 foreign players in form and so might not be able to fit in any new players, even if they were available.

Mumbai Indians- Mitchell Johnson hasn’t yet come into the Mumbai team and it’s still not clear why. Otherwise, the team is at full strength. So, they’ll be disappointed that they are currently 7th in the table.

Note: Team standings as of 27th April 2012.