All posts by h716a5.icu

Gio Reyna is seeing questions asked of his future at Borussia Dortmund, but the USMNT star reportedly has no desire to move in January.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Midfielder remains a key man for his countrySeeing limited game time at club levelInterest shown ahead of winter windowWHAT HAPPENED?

The United States international has nursed his way through more injury problems in the 2023-24 campaign, making it difficult for him to make the desired impact at club level. He has continued to be called upon by his country, with the U.S. into another CONCACAF Nations League semi-final.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Reyna has, however, taken in just 127 minutes of Bundesliga action this season – with only one start handed to him. His performances have been doing little to convince BVB boss Edin Terzic of his worth, leading to suggestions that a new challenge could be sought in the winter transfer window.

DID YOU KNOW?

are reporting, though, that Reyna has shown no interest in heading elsewhere. Several clubs are said to have cast admiring glances in the direction of the 21-year-old playmaker, but he is knocking all approaches back as he still wants to make his mark in Dortmund.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

GettyWHAT NEXT?

Sky transfer expert Florian Plettenberg has said “the whole situation can change in the summer, then it depends on Reyna”, but for now the USMNT star is ready to stay put and fight for the game time he craves heading towards the 2024 Copa America that will be staged in the United States next summer.

West Indies turned what looked likely to be a nail-biting chase into a canter over the line as the evening shadows enveloped Kensington Oval to secure a hugely notable shared series

The Report by Andrew McGlashan03-May-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details1:24

Dobell: Young architects of West Indian win promise more

West Indies turned what looked likely to be a nail-biting chase into a canter over the line as the evening shadows enveloped Kensington Oval to secure a hugely notable shared series. Darren Bravo and Jermaine Blackwood, both reining themselves in from their natural preference to attack when the game was in the balance, formed the decisive partnership of 108 for the fifth wicket.Bravo played with great maturity for 82 off 148 balls, taking West Indies to the brink of victory with a flourish of boundaries only to pick out mid-off with four needed. Blackwood, given a life on 4, remained unbeaten and completed an outstanding Test – and productive series – by showing levels of restraint that had not always been on show at other stages of the three matches and lofted the winning shot down the ground. It was the stand-out period of batting in a game dominated by the bowlers, although showed up much of the batting that preceded it.Bravo and Blackwood came together with the innings teetering on 80 for 4 when Shivnarine Chanderpaul, looking a shadow of the player who has carried West Indies for so long, dragged on to James Anderson’s first ball after tea. With an eye to the future, it could be very significant that West Indies held their nerve without a major contribution from Chanderpaul. It might not be the end for him yet, but it can’t be far away.Shortly after his departure, with West Indies 87 for 4, came a crucial moment. Blackwood, in a moment of hot-headedness that would not become a hallmark of a very calm innings, charged at Joe Root, had a mighty swing and missed, but Jos Buttler could not gather the stumping. It was the last clear-cut chance that England had before the match was gone as Blackwood and Bravo became increasingly confident once the target was below three figures.Bravo has often been accused, with some justification, of too many lapses in concentration and there were moments in this innings when he could have succumbed but impressively battled through. Before tea, the score froze as England strung together six consecutive maidens – a period which brought the wicket of Marlon Samuels – and then when he moved into the 30s he was offered regular reminders by Buttler of his propensity to fall in such a position. Instead, he eased to a 116-ball half-century.Occasionally he came out of his shell, including hammering the first ball after tea from Root for six then twice launching Moeen Ali straight down the ground as the target came into view. The first of Bravo’s sixes off Moeen had been proceeded by 13 coming from an Anderson over (although two of the boundaries were byes and leg byes) which signalled there would be no final twist.Darren Bravo guided West Indies’ chase with a superbly controlled innings•Getty ImagesThe result is a huge tick for Phil Simmons at the end of his first series in charge. It is only six months since West Indies pulled out of the tour of India, which was followed by a poor World Cup (although better than England’s). History tells us that problems are often not far away but, barring the final day in Grenada, the fight they have shown in this series offers some hope.Quite what Colin Graves, the incoming ECB chairman who has been at this Test, will make of it remains to be seen. He branded West Indies “mediocre” before the series and said anything less than a series victory would bring serious questions. A few people may be sitting uneasily on the flight back to England.Alastair Cook’s job is unlikely to be under threat – helped by his first-innings hundred – but he will need to explain England’s collective batting failure in this match. They had the best of conditions after winning the toss but could only muster 257 and the way West Indies secured the win added much kudos to their bowling display to keep England to 123, as they added 84 more on the third morning in 21 overs.Cook was severely hampered in the field as he tried to defend 192 by the struggles of Moeen. Although Moeen removed Kraigg Brathwaite, courtesy of another fine slip catch from Chris Jordan, he again offered up far too many short deliveries. Cook could not trust him and was forced to turn back to Anderson. The way West Indies attacked Moeen is something he will have to be prepared for during the Ashes.Anderson’s removal of Chanderpaul left him on 397 Test wickets – 400 will surely follow at Lord’s in a couple of the weeks against New Zealand, the same ground and opposition where he notched 300 in 2013 – but there has to be more wicket-taking support. Broad’s spell before tea was impressive, and touched 90mph, but he could not conjure one of those magic bursts that have studded his career. Jordan was the pick of the other quicks, making the opening breakthrough when he trapped Shai Hope lbw with a full inswinger, and his first spell showed further evidence of a bowler developing.England’s 123 was their lowest Test total since being bowled out for 72 by Pakistan, in Abu Dhabi, on the tour in early 2012. The key lead being spoken about was 200 and in the end, after a dash from Buttler, they were not far away but although wickets continued to tumble with haste in the morning there was a hint of what could follow, with less on offer for the quicks than the wicket-fuelled second day when 18 fell.For 20 minutes England ticked over comfortably, but Veerasammy Permaul struck with his second delivery of the day when Gary Ballance played for turn which did not eventuate and edged low to slip. West Indies thought they had struck again in the next over when Buttler was given caught behind before he had scored, but the DRS saved him.Buttler and Stokes decided it was time for their natural game: attack. Buttler opened his account with an effortless straight six off Permaul while Stokes took up the challenge presented by the field to play the reverse sweep. But when Stokes drove Permaul to cover then Jason Holder removed Jordan and Broad in consecutive deliveries the innings was hurtling to a conclusion and, ultimately, England were well short. A few interesting weeks lie ahead of them.

Will Boyle has urged Wrexham fans to get the Racecourse Ground "rocking" as they prepare for the visit of last season's rivals Notts County.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Wrexham and Notts County battled for promotion last seasonWelsh side pipped rivals to titleBoth teams earned over 100 pointsWHAT HAPPENED?

Wrexham broke a run of three successive defeats against Sutton United on Tuesday evening, winning 2-1, and they will now renew their rivalry with Notts County this weekend. The two sides engaged in a classic battle for automatic promotion in the National League last season; Wrexham won the title with 111 points, while County finished second with 107, and were ultimately promoted via the play-offs. As a result, Boyle has urged fans to ratchet up the noise levels on Saturday.

AdvertisementWHAT BOYLE SAID

Speaking to Wrexham's YouTube channel after the win ovr Sutton, Boyle said: "It’s Saturday-Tuesday now. We play the next two Tuesdays now. Lots of away games. So it's good for the spirit. We go again back to the Racecourse on Saturday and hopefully we can get that place rocking. So there's a lot of work still to do, we know that. But that was a good result for us."

Getty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The two clubs have not been as close this season. Wrexham are currently fourth, six points behind leaders Stockport with a game in hand, while Notts County are seventh, and have taken a severe dip in form, failing to win any of their last five games.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

GettyWHAT NEXT?

A Wrexham victory this weekend could see them move into the top-three, the automatic promotion spots, while a County victory would give them some daylight to eighth, as they currently occupy the final play-off place.

Dwayne Smith, the West Indies allrounder, will miss the Perth Scorchers’ opening game of the Big Bash League 2013-14, on Sunday

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Dec-2013Dwayne Smith, the West Indies allrounder, will miss the Perth Scorchers’ opening game of the Big Bash League 2013-14 on Sunday. Smith, one of the Scorchers’ two overseas signings, has not travelled to Australia due to personal reasons, and his availability for the remainder of the season is in doubt.”Dwayne Smith will miss this weekend’s opening round of BBL … due to personal reasons which have prevented him from travelling to Australia,” the Scorchers said. “Details regarding his availability for subsequent matches will be advised in due course. The Scorchers and Smith’s management are working through this situation and advise that it is inappropriate to make any further comment at this time.”Justin Langer, the Scorchers’ coach, said the team would have to “work around” Smith’s absence. “He has personal problems back in Barbados. I can understand it from his point of view, but it’s frustrating that we only found out two days ago,” Langer was quoted as saying by Australian papers. “We’re just going to have to work our way around that and do the best we can without him.”We’re working closely with his management group to see when he can arrive. I think he is going through some tough times at home, so there is some doubt [if he will play at all].”The Scorchers take on the Brisbane Heat in an away game for their campaign opener before playing their first home match, against Melbourne Renegades, on Boxing Day. Their other overseas signing is South Africa pacer Alfonso Thomas.

Stuart Broad has admitted there is no certainty that he will remain England’s T20 captain after their group-stage exit in Bangladesh

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Mar-2014Stuart Broad has admitted there is no certainty that he will remain England’s T20 captain after their group-stage exit in Bangladesh and with his troublesome knee in need of increasingly urgent repair.Broad has been T20 captain since 2011, when he replaced Paul Collingwood, and was initially part of a trio of leaders until Alastair Cook became Test captain alongside the one-day job. He has not been able to lead England out of the group stage in either of the World T20s he has captained in, with the team putting up an abject defence of their title in Sri Lanka two years followed by their latest early departure in Chittagong.The next World T20 is again scheduled for the subcontinent – India in 2016 – and Broad conceded that there could be a new man at the helm. “I don’t know, there’s going to be a decision made on coaching staff so there might be a few changes in the next two months or so,” he said.A change could come as soon as England’s next T20, against Sri Lanka in May – the favourite to take over would be Eoin Morgan – depending on the route taken by England’s medical staff to deal with the patellar tendonitis which has troubled Broad for large parts of the winter.There are a couple of approaches that could be taken, ranging from a continued management of the problem which may mean Broad is sidelined of less time before, perhaps, utilising England’s reasonably quiet period from October to December, to a more substantial solution that may include surgery and a longer lay-off. It will be one of the key decisions for the new head coach – expected to be Ashley Giles – when that position is confirmed next month.”I’m probably going to be unavailable for the start of the season in one-day cricket to sort my knee out,” Broad said. “I need a rehab period on my tendonitis, which is generally about an eight-week period so whether I take just four weeks in April to play in May and then take a couple of months after the season I don’t know but it’s got to the stage where it’s really sore and I need it sorted out.”You know in international cricket you can’t perform at your best when you’re carrying an injury. We’ve managed it pretty well but it’s in the hands of the medical staff and a bit of negotiation with the head coach when that’s decided.”It appears fairly certain that Nottinghamshire will not see much of Broad early in the season. England begin their home season with an ODI against Scotland on May 9, followed by a one-off T20 and five-match limited-overs series against Sri Lanka. The first Test of the summer begins on June 12 then India then visit for a tour which includes five Tests, five ODIs and a T20.

Allrounder Mitchell Marsh will miss Australia’s one-off Twenty20 against Pakistan due to a hamstring injury he picked up while playing for Perth Scorchers in the Champions League T20

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Oct-2014Allrounder Mitchell Marsh is in doubt for his Test debut later this month after a hamstring injury ruled him out of Australia’s T20 against Pakistan this Sunday. Marsh is also unlikely to play in the three-match ODI series that follows the T20 after he picked up the hamstring injury while playing for Perth Scorchers in the Champions League T20.Marsh appeared a near-certainty to make his Test debut in Dubai in the absence of injured allrounder Shane Watson, and if he is unavailable it could bring offspinning allrounder Glenn Maxwell into the mix. The heat in the UAE will mean Australia need an allrounder capable of bowling a significant number of overs, and Marsh may need to prove his fitness in the four-day tour game against Pakistan A.”He’s not playing the T20 and he’s unlikely to be okay for the one-dayers,” Kountouris said. “The timelines are just too tight and we’re probably not going to have a crack at it I don’t think. He’s moving around okay and seems okay, but we’ll wait and see for the Test matches how he progresses. There’s certainly enough time for the Test matches.”Marsh had undergone surgery on the same hamstring – on his left leg – two years ago. According to Cricket Australia, he had “felt a pinch” in his hamstring while captaining the Scorchers against Lahore Lions on Tuesday and went off the field for an extended period, but had later come out to bat, bailing the team out from a tight corner with 63 not out off 38.However, the injury apparently worsened on the flight to over to Dubai. Scans revealed that he had possibly torn scar tissue from the previous injury, but Cricket Australia is seeking the opinion of specialists, including the surgeon who had operated on him two years ago.”Trying to decipher what’s new, what’s old, what’s abnormal, what’s normal, is a bit hard,” Kountouris said. “So we’re getting some opinions from back home from the guy who did the surgery, just to double-check with what we’re doing. The consensus is that he’s only torn the scar tissue but we’re still looking into it.”If that’s the only thing that’s happened it’s going to be a sort of mild hamstring strain. It might get better really quickly or it might get better very slowly. That’s what we don’t know because of the unique nature of the injury.”The two-Test series begins on October 22 and should Marsh play he will join his brother Shaun and father Geoff as Australia Test representatives. The four-day warm-up game in Sharjah is likely now to effectively serve as a fitness Test for Marsh as well as captain Michael Clarke, who is also recovering from a hamstring problem.

Nottinghamshire and Somerset continued to make the most of batsmen-friendly conditions after learning that their Division One status had already been preserved for another season

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Sep-2013
ScorecardJames Hildreth’s 161 took him beyond 1000 first-class runs in another solid season•PA PhotosNottinghamshire and Somerset continued to make the most of batsmen-friendly conditions after learning that their Division One status had already been preserved for another season.Both sides would still have been vulnerable if Derbyshire had been able to win their final contest but as news filtered through of their defeat to Warwickshire, 17 miles away, attention returned to matters at Trent Bridge with a sixth-place finish up for grabs.Somerset collected four batting bonus points after reaching 372 in their first innings, with James Hildreth eventually falling for 161 and Harry Gurney returning career-best figures of 5 for 81.Beginning again, Nottinghamshire batted positively in advancing to 139 for 3, an overall lead of 173, with Steven Mullaney making a quickfire 59 for the hostsHildreth had earlier passed 1,000 first-class runs for the season during his stand of 248 with Nick Compton, who was eventually bowled by Samit Patel’s quicker ball for 87. Gurney, who had removed Marcus Trescothick the previous evening, boosted his own tally of wickets after the second new ball had been taken.Its first victim had been Hildreth, caught behind off Luke Fletcher – presenting Chris Read with his 750th catch for Nottinghamshire and a dismissal that heralded the start of three wickets falling in a seven-ball spell.Jos Buttler was then trapped lbw by Gurney for 13 and left the field without any obvious farewell gestures, despite the rumours of an impending move, before the left-arm fast bowler also removed Craig Meschede. Lewis Gregory chanced his arm in making an undefeated 40 which included an uncontrolled pull for six off Brett Hutton, but then ran out of partners as the innings was wound up.Peter Trego guided Gurney into the hands of point and the bowler’s first Nottinghamshire five-wicket haul and his 100th first-class scalp was Alfonso Thomas, well caught at slip by Riki Wessels.Mullaney set the tone for Nottinghamshire’s second innings, racing to a half-century in just 38 balls, with 11 fours but then drove Trego to mid-off. Wessels and Michael Lumb each added 20 but the day had a slightly curious ending as Craig Kieswetter removed the wicketkeeper’s pads to have a bowl but Trescothick – rather than Buttler – put them on for the final five overs.With both sides locked together on exactly the same number of points – Somerset having won one game more this season – Nottinghamshire will need to force the win on the final day of the season to go ahead of their west country rivals.

According to respected journalist Alan Nixon on Twitter, Che Adams could be available for just £12 million in the last knockings of the January transfer window. The 22-year-old currently plays his football at Championship outfit Birmingham City and has done so since leaving Sheffield United back in 2016, with his fine goal-scoring exploits seemingly attracting interest from clubs in the Premier League.

And that’s because a recent report from Sky Sports suggests that Burnley have failed with a Deadline Day move for the striker, although Nixon on Twitter suggests that the young Englishman could be available for just £12 million.

And with Manuel Pellegrini’s West Ham reportedly (as per The Sun’s Live Transfer Blog at 10.53am) eyeing up a last-gasp move for Stoke City’s Mame Biram Diouf, the Hammers simply must end their somewhat strange interest in the forward to instead target a late move for 22-year-old Adams.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, Stoke striker Diouf has found first team football hard to come by at the bet365 Stadium this season with only seven Championship appearances to his name so far, in which time the Senegal international has failed to net to underline his difficulties at the Staffordshire-based outfit.

And with no appearances for Nathan Jones’ side since the middle of November, it’s pretty clear that the former Manchester United forward is some way down the pecking order at the Potters, which makes West Ham’s reported (as per The Sun) interest somewhat strange – he can’t get into a Championship team, let alone one in mid-table in the Premier League.

Ultimately, the Hammers are likely looking for strikers that can hit the ground running were they to move to the London Stadium this month, and while Diouf performed solidly last term in the top-flight with six goals for Stoke, his lack of regular football suggests that he simply isn’t the answer – and at the age of 31, he’d hardly be a nod to the long-term either.

Whereas 22-year-old Adams has not only shone and thus out-performed the Potters striker this season, but the Birmingham sensation looks set for an extremely bright future in the game to suggest that £12 million could prove to be an absolute bargain.

The Englishman has enjoyed his best season in front of goal this term since moving to St Andrew’s back in 2016, with the 22-year-old having bagged 15 goals in just 29 appearances for Garry Monk’s side – in fact, only four players have netted more than Adams in the Championship this term.

And this campaign doesn’t appear to be a complete one-off either given the 22-year-old scored seven times in his first season at Birmingham in 2016/17 before adding nine for the Blues last time round – he has been threatening to go on and exceed double figures, which is exactly what he’s done this season.

Clearly then, Adams appears to be improving and very much on the upward curve, which at the age of 22 suggests that he could be destined for big things in the game – big things that could happen at West Ham.

The Hammers are seemingly in the market for a forward on Deadline Day hence their reported interest (as per The Sun) in Stoke’s Diouf, which isn’t overly suprising given strikers Javier Hernandez, Lucas Perez, and Andy Carroll have bagged just 11 times between them in all competitions this term – for what it’s worth, Marko Arnautovic has eight himself.

Yet Stoke’s Diouf simply hasn’t done enough this term to suggest that he could be the man for Pellegrini’s side going forward, yet Birmingham’s Adams certainly appears to be given his form, but also the fact that, at 22, he is only likely to improve.

And for just £12 million, it’s a move the East London outfit simply must make before this evening’s 11pm deadline.

West Ham fans… what do you think? Let us know!

It took just 42.2 overs on the third day for West Indies to clinch the second Test, sweep the series, win six Tests in a row and inflict another surrender to spin on Zimbabwe

The Report by Siddhartha Talya22-Mar-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Shane Shillingford was unstoppable in his hometown•WICB Media Photo/Randy BrooksIt took just 42.2 overs on the third day for West Indies to clinch the second Test, sweep the series, win six Tests in a row and inflict another surrender to spin on Zimbabwe.The hosts promptly declared during a 15-minute rain delay in the morning, and a solid start from the Zimbabwe batsmen was a hugely misleading prelude to what was to follow. Once again, Zimbabwe failed to sustain a promising phase of play long enough against a superior opposition. Shane Shillingford was their nemesis again, picking up 10 wickets in the match, several of which owed to the unsettling bounce he was able to extract from the track in his hometown.The strategy for West Indies was simple, having successfully employed it in the first Test and the first innings in Dominica. The spinners, Shillingford, brought on in the 13th over, and Marlon Samuels, who picked up six wickets in the game, got the ball to turn, and more crucially bounce, from the off stump, surrounded the Zimbabwe batsmen with close-in fielders, who snapped up what came their way or had their team-mates in the outfield ready for opportunities borne out of a desperate attempt to find a release.Vusi Sibanda and Brendan Taylor countered that pressure temporarily by sweeping Shillingford, Sibanda even struck him for six over deep square leg, but it was only a matter of time before the spitting bounce that proved Zimbabwe’s undoing throughout the series returned to trouble them. Taylor was caught on the glove when Shillingford held his length back and caught at short leg.Smart stats

West Indies’ victory is their sixth in a row. They have won two each against New Zealand, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Since the start of 2012, they have won six and lost four matches (two draws).

The win is West Indies’ sixth in eight Tests against Zimbabwe. The two draws came in Tests played in Zimbabwe.

Shane Shillingford’s haul of 19 wickets is the highest by a West Indies bowler in a two-Test series. He is also the first West Indian and 14th overall to take three or more five-fors in a two-Test series.

Shillingford’s 10 for 93 is his career best and the best bowling performance for West Indies against Zimbabwe, surpassing his nine-wicket haul in the previous Test in Barbados.

Shillingford’s 10 for 93 is also the fifth-best performance by a West Indian spinner.

The win is West Indies’ second by an innings since 2009. It is only their sixth innings win since 2000 (two each against Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and England).

Taylor’s wicket marked the start of the spinners coming to dominate the innings, but Tino Best and Darren Sammy did their bit to end Zimbabwe’s early resistance. Best was guilty of bowling too short, and Sibanda had cashed in, slashing hard through the off side and even driving handsomely for boundaries when the ball was pitched up, as he did against Shannon Gabriel. But Best went round the wicket to Hamilton Masakadza, who was also set, got him to seemingly glove one down the leg side, reviewed the “not out” decision and got it overturned. A possible reason for the third umpire to reverse the original call was a change in rotation of the ball as it reached Masakadza’s glove, indicating there may have been contact.Minutes earlier, in the same over, Masakadza had successfully reviewed another caught-behind decision, this time having been given out, though the evidence, in the absence of Hot Spot, was again inconclusive.Just two balls after Taylor had been sent back, Sibanda played a rash shot across the line to Sammy to be trapped in front, his failed review confirming the ball would have clipped the bails.With the top order out of the way, Shillingford and Samuels eased past those that came after. Sean Williams got a top-edge while trying to play a cut against Shillingford, to be caught at point, and the capitulation picked up speed following the lunch break. Craig Ervine survived 34 balls but was caught brilliantly by Chris Gayle diving to his left at slip to pouch an edge with one hand. The extra bounce in the track brought the backward short leg into play and Malcolm Waller found that fielder when he tried to work Samuels away off the back foot. Shillingford had, six overs earlier, dismissed Tino Mawoyo, forced to bat at No.7 after missing a good part of the second day’s play, in the same region.With Waller, perhaps Zimbabwe’s best batsman in the limited-overs series this tour, back in the pavilion, West Indies required just four more overs to wrap up the innings. Graeme Cremer’s stand-out shot was a six over long-on with his eyes staring at the ground at the point of, as well as after, impact, but inside-edged a catch towards midwicket trying the same stroke to give Shillingford his fifth wicket. It was also Shillingford’s tenth for the match and 19th for the series – the best returns in a two-match series for a West Indies bowler, going past Courtney Walsh’s 16 in New Zealand in 1994-95.Paul Jarvis and Tendai Chatara lasted just two deliveries, Samuels hastening the end of a mismatch that continued West Indies’ best run of consecutive victories in Tests – now six – since 1988.

Champions Durham could end the season with a defeat after Sussex took control on the second day of their Championship match at Hove

25-Sep-2013
ScorecardBen Brown played another solid knock to give Sussex the advantage•Getty ImagesChampions Durham could end the season with a defeat after Sussex took control on the second day of their Championship match at Hove. Just 36.2 overs were possible because of bad light and after several inspections play was called off at 5pm with Durham 2 for 0 in their second innings.Sussex were earlier bowled out for 328 to earn themselves a first-innings lead of 164, after an excellent recovery by their lower order from 90 for 5. Luke Wright (87) missed out on a century but Ben Brown (64) and Ashar Zaidi scored valuable runs to give their side a useful advantage.Wright resumed on 74 and showed his intent in the first over of the day when he took two boundaries off the country’s leading wicket-taker, Graham Onions. He had a reprieve on 83 when a mistimed off drive just eluded extra cover but there was little Wright could do with the delivery that bowled him as Chris Rushworth got one to nip back and keep low. Wright’s runs came off 78 balls with 16 fours and a six.At that stage Sussex’s lead was a modest 39 but Brown and Zaidi batted impressively in a stand of 83 in 20 overs for the seventh wicket.Zaidi is playing only his second first-class match in four years and hoping to earn a permanent contract with Sussex. Originally from Pakistan, he moved to England to play club cricket for Accrington in the Lancashire League and got his opportunity a fortnight ago after a successful trial in Sussex’s second team.He began by hooking his first ball from Rushworth for six and attacked at every opportunity, hitting six fours. Brown gave him excellent support and Zaidi was in sight of a half-century when he was caught at slip off Ben Stokes. He left the field angrily and the umpires called Stokes and Paul Collingwood, Durham’s captain, into their room at lunch to discuss it further.Brown, who had come to the crease with Sussex in trouble on 90 for 5, reached his fifth half-century of the season before driving to point to give legspinner Scott Borthwick his first wicket just before lunch.Chris Jordan was well held at slip by Collingwood when he propped forward to Borthwick before Onions, who had been unusually expensive by his high standards, picked up his third wicket after switching ends when Steve Magoffin edged to second slip.There had already been one brief stoppage when thick mist rolled over theground two balls into Durham’s second innings. The umpires made several inspections during the afternoon but with no breeze to shift the mist the light did not improve sufficiently for there to be a restart.