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GOAL spoke to five American champions about what it takes to win the tournament and what they learned along the way

Winning the World Cup is anything but easy, despite how the United States women's national team has made it seem at times. No team has been more successful at this level, and no team has dominated this tournament quite like the USWNT. The U.S. has won four of the eight World Cups, including each of the last two as they head into this summer's tournament searching for a threepeat.

A total of 68 American players have lifted that trophy at the end of four different tournaments, and each of them has their own story. Some have gone down as legends, some as unheralded contributors to teams that went down in history. Many of the USWNT's biggest stars saw their careers defined by those World Cup moments, from the famous 1999 team all the way to the 2019 champions that outdueled several of the world's best teams on their way to victory.

Each of those 68 players, though, has made her mark on the game while living through an experience that few on the outside can even imagine. This summer's USWNT group has 14 players going to their first World Cup, and each of those players will learn that these tournaments are rollercoasters as they look to turn 68 into 82.

"These tournaments, they are insane," USWNT captain Lindsey Horan told GOAL ahead of the upcoming tournament. "It's the most wild ride that you can possibly be on. It's so stressful, so chaotic, and there's so much that goes into it."

With the 2023 World Cup looming, GOAL caught up with USWNT stars past and present to ask them one big question: how do you win the Women's World Cup?

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  Kristine Lilly (1991 and 1999): Enjoy the process

  There is no player in USWNT history with more experience than Kristine Lilly, and it isn't particularly close. With 354 caps over a 23-year career, Lilly has 38 more appearances than Carli Lloyd, who sits second on that list. And, with her 130 career goals, Lilly is behind only Lloyd, Mia Hamm and Abby Wambach on the USWNT's all-time goalscoring charts.

  Lilly participated in five World Cups, winning two of them. Her most memorable moments, though, came during the famous 1999 tournament, as she and the USWNT changed women's sports forever with their triumph on the biggest stage. In the final against China, Lilly's goalline clearance saved the USWNT, paving the way for the legendary penalty shootout that followed.

  Eight years later, she became the first woman to play in five different World Cups and, with her goal against England, she became the oldest woman to ever score in the tournament.

  Because of all of that, there may not be a player out there more qualified to discuss what it takes than Lilly, who tasted plenty of success, but also her share of failure, with the USWNT.

  "I think one thing is to stay healthy," she told GOAL, "so be smart in training leading up to it and be smart in taking care of your body. Another is just coming together as a team. It's all about you guys as a team, so make sure that you guys are all tied in together and feeling good.

  "The last thing is to enjoy it. It's a process. It's amazing that you get to compete in a World Cup. Whether it's your first, second, third, they're always amazing, so enjoy the process."

  Having been retired for over a decade now, Lilly says she can now fully grasp the impact that her teams had on the game. It's something that many may not have understood at the time but, even now, the USWNT still finds itself under the microscope as a flagbearer of the women's game and women's sports in general.

  "In 1999 when we did win, for us, we won the World Cup but after, it was about what we did to change minds on the women's game and women's sports," she said. "After that World Cup, I was like 'Wow, we won the thing, but we also did something bigger' and that was really cool."

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  Michelle Akers (1991 and 1999): Just freakin' win!

  If you came up before the social media age, you'll know just how good Michelle Akers was. To this day, the longtime USWNT star is considered among the best players to ever play. That's how dominant Akers was.

  She was named FIFA's Female Player of the Century in 2002, was the first woman to receive the FIFA Order of Merit and was only one of two women, alongside Mia Hamm, named to Pele's FIFA 100 list. Akers was a member of the USWNT for the program's first-ever game in 1985, and scored the first goal in the team's history in a 2-2 draw with Denmark.

  Much has changed since that goal, of course, but Akers says the mindset sure hasn't. "My first tip for the USA to win the World Cup is to just freakin' win," she told GOAL. "That's No.1."

  Simple, right? Well, not really. Winning was never quite that simple, especially for Akers, who, due to her status, was frequently challenged in ways other players couldn't imagine.

  In 1991, she was moved from striker to central midfielder, at least partly to avoid the beatings that frequently left her injured up top. She suffered a concussion and a knee injury for the 1995 World Cup, tore her MCL in the 1996 Olympics and dislocated her shoulder in 1999 en route to that title.

  It takes a certain mindset to survive all of that, and it takes an even wilder mindset to not just survive, but win. Akers surely did a lot of winning, and she says the key to all of it is determination, pure determination.

  "In my opinion, it's preparation, preparation, preparation, but also the team dynamic and the cohesive team unit," she said. "There also needs to be the ever-present hunger to kick ass every single day, every single minute, every single game.

  "Our team has that, but the rest of the world is inching up, so how do you keep that going and be relentless in pursuit of that? That's the key to everything."

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  Heather O'Reilly (2015): Stay off GOAL!

  A 2015 World Cup winner, Heather O'Reilly has some advice that could be good for the USWNT, but maybe not so great for GOAL!

  "What I would tell the girls is to build an insular environment: get off social, get off articles, get off rankings," O'Reilly told GOAL. "There are websites, like this one, that will do rankings of players after games and that just can distract players. What they really need to do is just take it one game at a time and continue to grow into the tournament."

  During her career, O'Reilly went to three World Cups and got her hands on every color medal. She started with the 2007 tournament, where the U.S. won bronze. In 2011, she went all 120 minutes in the final as the U.S. fell to Japan. Finally, in 2015, she got her hands on that elusive trophy, serving as a vital veteran leader as the U.S. began its current run of dominance.

  "In 2011, we made it to the final and wound up losing to Japan on penalty kicks, which was heartbreaking for us. Just being in the starting line up for the final, feeling the buzz in the stadium, it's something I won't forget," O'Reilly said. "Unfortunately, we didn't get it done at the end of the day, but it was an incredible game to be part of.

  "Rushing the field after 2015 was amazing. My team-mate, Carli Lloyd, scored a hat-trick in the final, which was unbelievable. Carli and I grew up together in New Jersey and I've known her since she was a kid. It was a special moment and an accumulation of all of these things that go on behind the scenes and, in this one moment, it came together. That's pretty awesome."

  Over the years, O'Reilly says she's seen the game evolve, bringing new levels of attention and pressure that, as a team, the USWNT must always learn to cope with.

  "To win the World Cup is obviously a tremendous challenge," she said. "Obviously, a lot of people are coming for the U.S. team…It's about sticking together as a unit. Obviously, in this world where people have individual deals now and attention, which is great for women's soccer, what has carried the U.S. team for a long time is fighting as a group, and that brings the best out of all of the individuals.

  "If this young team can focus on doing that and sticking through the tough times, there are like 45 days together, right? Some players are playing, some aren't, some are having trouble scoring, everyone has their own individual situation, but if they can stick together as a team, I think that unit is really strong."

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  Alex Morgan (2015 and 2019): Give yourself grace

  Looking back at it, Alex Morgan wishes she wasn't quite so hard on herself. Back in 2011, Morgan was a 22-year-old rising star, the youngest player in that summer's World Cup squad. Just one year prior, she'd earned her first cap and, heading into that summer, she was a key player for the USWNT. Obviously, it didn't pan out, with Morgan and the U.S. falling to Japan in that famous final.

  Looking back, with the benefit of 2015 and 2019 titles on her resume, Morgan has since realized that she put herself under a bit too much pressure to succeed.

  "Going into my first major tournament, I was very wide-eyed and super anxious and so overly critical of myself in moments that I needed to be more forgiving of myself and give myself more grace," Morgan told GOAL earlier this summer. "It goes from playing and missing a shot to feeling like you said something wrong to the media.

  "When you get into a major tournament, you're going to already have so much criticism from the outside, you don't need it from inside. The last thing you need is to be self-critical. You need to have almost like a full thinking-forward mindset and like a forgetfulness. The last shot, the last game, it's behind you. You have an opportunity coming up."

  She added: "If you are going through group stages or knockout stages and you're still there, you're doing something right, and so you don't need to be critical of yourself in that moment. You've prepared all before and done all the 99 percent to show that one percent to the rest of the world. You could be critical of yourself during that 99%, but once you get to the top, this is your time to enjoy and to shine."

  Morgan will, of course, be heading into her fourth World Cup this summer. She heads into it with 18 career World Cup appearances to her name, making her one of four USWNT players in the squad with double-digit games at the tournament. With 206, she also is one of six players with more than 100 caps.

  The striker also has nine career World Cup goals, six of which came at the 2019 tournament. Set to start at striker this time around, the USWNT will need her to add to that tally if they are to make a deep run.

  Looking back at her first three World Cups, Morgan feels more than prepared. Still, she feels the same level of excitement she felt as that 22-year-old newcomer: "I think that, going into this World Cup, the level of excitement is there, just as much as my first one, but definitely the outlook and the anxiousness and the feeling of kind of being overwhelmed is a little bit at bay."

An injury to their star striker and the retirement of their veteran goalkeeper are just two of the reasons for Wrexham's early-season struggles

Expectations were sky high at the SToK Racecourse heading into Wrexham's first season back in the Football League since 2008. The 2022-23 campaign was one of the most joyous in the club's history.

Buoyed by the generous ownership of Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, Phil Parkinson's side romped to the National League title, recording a division-record points tally in the process. And although no one was denying that there would be a step up in quality this season, Wrexham were the bookies' favourites to go up again.

Flash forward to the present and the feel-good factor around the club has taken a significant dent. At the time of writing, Wrexham are currently stuck in mid-table, albeit just four points adrift of league leaders and rivals Notts County at this early stage.

With only six games played, it would be ridiculous to write off the Red Dragons. However, Parkinson and Co will still not be entirely satisfied with the way they have started the campaign.

Getty ImagesFar from a dream return to the EFL…

Things are never boring in north Wales and nothing summed this up better than Wrexham's League Two curtain-raiser against MK Dons at the Racecourse. The Red Dragons were 2-0 down inside 10 minutes and 4-1 down after an hour, with a pulsating game eventually ending 5-3 to the visitors.

To their credit, Wrexham responded a few days later by knocking cash-strapped Wigan Athletic out of the Carabao Cup on penalties, before stumbling to a 1-1 away draw at AFC Wimbledon.

Their first win since returning to the Football League was eventually earned against Walsall on August 15, but they were brought crashing back down to Earth by a completely bonkers draw with Swindon Town.

Losing 4-1 at home with little over half an hour on the clock, a 96th-minute leveller from Elliot Lee eventually earned them a 5-5 draw. It was a breathless affair but Parkinson was not happy at full time and a 1-1 stalemate with Barrow did little to raise his mood.

Since then there have been some green shoots of consistency, with back-to-back wins over rivals Tranmere and Newcastle U21s coming after a penalty-shootout defeat to Bradford in the Carabao Cup.

So, Wrexham are out of one of the domestic cups and have more draws than wins to start the League Two season. Any hopes of 'p*ssing the league' are firmly in the rear-view mirror.

AdvertisementGettyNo magic Mullin

The reasons for Wrexham's less-than-stellar start are multi-faceted. By far and away the biggest factor in their early struggles, though, has been the absence of their offensive talisman Paul Mullin.

Mullin was clattered by Manchester United goalkeeper Nathan Bishop during a pre-season friendly over the summer, with the collision leaving the striker with a punctured lung. It was a scary moment, with the 28 year old revealing: "I was trying to breathe in but nothing was happening. I couldn’t get air into my lungs. That’s when I knew it was bad. In that struggle for breath, with my lips turning blue, I accepted that this could be it for me. That’s how it felt. I couldn’t breathe properly for a few minutes."

Mullin has been Wrexham's standout player since arriving at the club from Cambridge United in 2021, scoring a ridiculous 74 goals in just 90 games. The 32 goals he plundered for Cambridge during the 2020-21 season also suggests that he would have had no issue with the heightened competition this campaign, with many tipping him to claim another Golden Boot this year.

But due to his grizzly injury, he has not made it onto the pitch at all so far. With him leading the line, there's little doubt that Wrexham would have been able to turn a few of their low-scoring draws into victories. Indeed, the Red Dragons have had little issue creating chances so far, registering 70 shots in League Two – the fourth highest in the division. They've just needed their star striker converting them.

There is light at the end of the tunnel at least, with Parkinson confirming that Mullin had returned to training recently. Wrexham will be desperate to get him back on the pitch as soon as possible.

GettyFoster hangs up his GoPro

Mullin is not the only high-profile star Wrexham have lost in recent times. Heading into the 2023-24 season, Ben Foster was full of fighting talk, backing he and his team-mates for a League Two title charge.

However, just five games into the new campaign, Foster announced that he was hanging up his gloves for a second time, having previously been tempted out of retirement by Reynolds and McElhenney earlier this year.

The news came as a shock to fans, team-mates and manager Parkinson, with the 'Cycling GK' explaining his decision in a recent interview.

"I just got to the point where I didn’t feel that I could do the team justice. I felt like my legs had slowed down, my sharpness, my spring, my reflexes. I felt I’d let too many goals in that I knew I should have been saving. When I got to that point I felt I was letting my team-mates down. I can’t do that, I can’t look at myself in the mirror. It’s the right decision, there’s no shame in it," he said.

Although Wrexham did ship a lot of goals with Foster between the sticks, 13 to be precise, it's hard not to feel that the ex-England international was being a little harsh on himself. But if Foster wasn't feeling comfortable anymore, he has made the right decision. Still, losing your first-choice goalkeeper so early in the season is bound to have significantly disrupted the squad.

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GettyA chaotic transfer strategy

Foster's departure instigated a mad dash to sign a replacement goalkeeper. And this haphazardness seemed to sum up Wrexham's approach to the most recent transfer window.

Early in the summer, Parkinson had preached caution, with the Red Dragons making just one signing before the season kicked off, bringing in Will Boyle from Huddersfield. However, after winning just one of their opening three games, the club's owners sprung into action, strengthening the squad with a string of new arrivals.

First, James McClean arrived at the SToK Racecourse from League One Wigan for a fee of around £250,000 ($314,000). Not content with this, the club also had a busy deadline day, completing a last-minute double swoop.

First, George Evans – capable of playing in central defence or midfield – arrived from Millwall. Wrexham then raided Arsenal for Arthur Okonkwo, signing the promising goalkeeper on loan, likely to replace Foster.

MatériaMais Notícias

Após estrear com derrota na Taça Rio, o Macaé encerrou na manhã desta sexta-feira a preparação para o importante compromisso contra o Madureira, pela segunda rodada da competição. A equipe comandada pelo técnico Charles Almeida busca a reabilitação dentro do Campeonato Carioca, tendo em vista que ocupa a 11ª colocação geral. O elenco enxerga a partida deste sábado, às 16h, em Bacaxá, como primordial para afastar a possibilidade de disputar novamente a fase seletiva da competição estadual.

Titular nós últimos jogos da equipe, o atacante Alexandro sabe que não encontrará facilidade em Bacaxá, mas aposta na força do grupo para conquistar a primeira vitória no segundo turno.

– Nós sabemos que vai ser um jogo bastante difícil diante do Madureira, mas sabemos da importância desse jogo e a vitória será fundamental para dar moral ao grupo e deixar a parte inferior da tabela de classificação. Estamos trabalhando forte e confio na força do nosso elenco – disse o atacante.

Mesmo com a derrota por 1 a 0 para o Volta Redonda, na estreia do returno, o atacante Alexandro enxergou evolução na equipe. O jogador fez questão de elogiar o trabalho feito ao longo de semana, na preparação para o jogo de amanhã.

– Essa semana foi bastante produtiva. Trabalhamos forte para chegar bem diante do Madureira. Nosso foco é a permanência do Macaé Esporte na elite do Campeonato Carioca. Na primeira rodada contra o Volta Redonda o time mostrou outra cara e jogou muito bem. Infelizmente não conseguimos o resultado, mas se Deus quiser, esse jogo contra o Madureira vai ser diferente – encerrou.

RelacionadasVascoBlog do Garone: Os gols milionários de Cano pelo VascoVasco06/03/2020Seleção Brasileira‘Primeiro argumento é a vontade do jogador’, diz Jardine sobre convocação de Vinicius JúniorSeleção Brasileira06/03/2020Seleção BrasileiraJardine descarta ‘rebaixamento’ de Paquetá na Seleção Olímpica: ‘Espero que venha com brilho no olho’Seleção Brasileira06/03/2020

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details4:54

Agarkar: Super Kings doing what they do best

Suresh Raina’s 32-ball 62 set Chennai Super Kings on course to 181 for 8, before Ashish Nehra’s four wickets for 10 runs sent Royal Challengers Bangalore’s chase into the Chinnaswamy Stadium dirt. Not even a half-century from Virat Kohli could lift his team off the bottom of the table, as Super Kings caught superbly, and bowled with discipline to find the hosts 27 runs short.Dwayne Smith struck his customary early boundaries, blasting two successive sixes and a four in David Wiese’s seventh over, but it was when Raina began to accelerate that Super Kings appeared to be headed to a daunting score.He had hit Harshal Patel for successive fours, then launched Wiese into the sightscreen in the Powerplay, having arrived soon after Yuzvendra Chahal’s legspin undid Brendon McCullum. But it was Raina’s dominance of spin that was the feature of his knock, and Iqbal Abdulla was his first slow-bowling victim. Raina advanced to send Abdulla’s first ball way back into the stands beyond long-on, before cracking him for a four past point then lifting him into the long on stand again two overs later.When Chahal came back into the attack, Raina became even more bloody-minded. A still out-of-sorts MS Dhoni turned the strike over to him at the start of the 13th over, and Raina went on the rampage. He ran down at the bowler and lifted him over long on, again, for six. He expected Chahal to drop the next one short, and stayed in his crease but, even when the bowler delivered a good-length ball, swung it high and hard over cow corner. The next slog-sweep was stuck less cleanly, but still comfortably cleared the rope. His undoing came when he tried to hit his first six against the spin, next ball. Rilee Russouw ran around from long off to pouch him comfortably.At 124 for 3 after 13 overs, Super Kings may have had designs for a score over 200, but Royal Challengers’ bowlers claimed wickets often enough to rein the run rate in. Dhoni holed out for a run-a-ball 13 attempting a big shot over cover, his promotion to no. 4 not having worked. Then Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo both fell to Abdulla after mediocre knocks of their own.Faf du Plessis took a liking to Mitchell Starc towards the close, cracking two fours off the 17th over, while the remaining Super Kings batsmen gave him scant support. His unbeaten 33 from 18 balls lifted Super Kings above 180, even after Starc delivered a four-run final over.Having dropped Chris Gayle for this match, Royal Challengers’ chase began brightly enough. Manvinder Bisla hit a boundary either side of the wicket in Ishwar Pandey’s first over, then he and Russouw plundered 19 off Mohit Sharma. Nehra struck twice in the fourth over, and the hosts’ run rate plummeted from there.Virat Kohli began cautiously then freed his arms to hit two fours and a six off R Ashwin in the eighth over, but he could not hold onto his partners, thanks in part to Super Kings’ excellent fielding. Dinesh Karthik was out to a good diving catch from Dwayne Bravo at long-on, then when AB de Villiers turned to take a second run three overs later, Dhoni turned a mediocre throw into a run-out, by flicking the ball briskly onto the stumps to catch the batsman short of his ground.Kohli continued to watch wickets fall at the other end, and the chase foundered in the middle overs. With six overs to go, Royal Challengers needed 83 runs, with five wickets remaining. Kohli would battle on to 51 from 42 balls, but Nehra struck in successive balls to remove him and Harshal Patel in the 17th over, effectively sealing the game.

MatériaMais Notícias

O primeiro impacto sobre a contratação de Fernando Diniz pelo São Paulo não foi dos melhores, pelo menos para parte da torcida. A Torcida Independente, principal organizada do clube, se manifestou de forma negativa em relação à chegada do novo treinador já na noite da última quinta-feira, dia do anúncio.

TABELA
> Veja classificação e simulador do Brasileirão clicando aqui

Entre as críticas, algumas foram bem humoradas, com dizeres do tipo “Podem desligar os aparelhos”, “Luto, devolvam meu São Paulo”, seguidas de uma foto de um boneco em uma cama de hospital. Antes disso, sobrou críticas para a diretoria e a presidência do clube. “Não é possível, mais uma imbecilidade dessa diretoria. Retrocesso!”, “É Surreal! Leco, Rai, diretoria e conselheiros cumprindo a meta de acabar com o clube!”.

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Podem desligar os aparelhos.
Luto,devolva o nosso São Paulo ! pic.twitter.com/30ZoYig66L

— TORCIDA INDEPENDENTE (@T_Independente) September 27, 2019

Em outra postagem, a torcida diz se sentir como palhaça diante da contratação do treinador que substitui Cuca e já assume o time contra o Flamengo, neste sábado, às 19h, no Maracanã. Na imagem que acompanha o texto que se inicia com “Respeitável público”, há um circo com o símbolo do Tricolor.

Respeitável Público 🤞
O show tem que continuar,Seja bem vindo Fernando Diniz
Somos Todos Palhaços 🤡🤡🤡 pic.twitter.com/O1564vpRCb

— TORCIDA INDEPENDENTE (@T_Independente) September 27, 2019

O treinador será apresentado no CT da Barra Funda, às 12h15, após orientar seu primeiro treinamento no novo clube. Em seguida a delegação parte para o Rio de Janeiro, onde disputa a 22ª rodada do Brasileirão-2019. O Tricolor ocupa a sexta posição na tabela com 35 pontos, 13 atrás do líder Flamengo.

Confira outros tweets publicados pela Torcida Independente:

NÃO É POSSÍVEL,MAIS UMA IMBECILIDADE DESSA DIRETORIA.
RETROCESSO 👎👎👎

— TORCIDA INDEPENDENTE (@T_Independente) September 27, 2019

É Surreal Leco,Rai, diretoria, conselheiros cumprindo a meta de acabar com o clube!

— TORCIDA INDEPENDENTE (@T_Independente) September 27, 2019

Foram me chamar
Eu estou aqui,o que é que há
Eu vim de lá, eu vim de lá pequenininho
Mas eu vim de lá pequenininho
Alguém me avisou
Pra pisar nesse chão devagarinho
Alguém me avisou
Pra pisar nesse chão devagarinho. pic.twitter.com/lzjzIZzOtO

— TORCIDA INDEPENDENTE (@T_Independente) September 27, 2019

Os valores se inverteram!
Quem escolhe o técnico,escala o Time são os Atletas.Preguiça,mordomia e má vontade.Rendimento da equipe dentro campo é reflexo da falta de compromisso nos Treinos. Se não fortalecer e alongar a musculatura,não existe fisiologia no mundo que impeça lesão

— TORCIDA INDEPENDENTE (@T_Independente) September 27, 2019

ScorecardTom Smith’s nerveless innings took Lancashire to a one-wicket win and out of the bottom two•Getty Images

At 6.28pm on a sunlit Manchester evening Tom Smith pushed a delivery into the covers off Ben Stokes and hared down the wicket to complete a single with Lancashire’s last man Simon Kerrigan. He also won the game for his side. It was one of the finishes of this or any other season, not least because there were only two balls left in the contestAs Lancashire sealed their one-wicket victory, all of Old Trafford was filled with movement. Smith and Kerrigan raced into each other’s arms. Members in the pavilion, some of whom might have known better, forgot their dignity and leapt into the air, arms aloft. Elsewhere stewards whooped in delight and members of the commercial staff cheered for rather more than pecuniary reasons.From the Lancashire dressing room a deep-throated roar of triumph burst forth and it rent the charged air. Stephen Parry, who had apparently been “wittering” to captain Glen Chapple throughout the 26-minute last-wicket partnership, joined in the general jubilee. The victory had pulled Lancashire out of Division One’s relegation places, at Durham’s expense, and who knows what the consequences might be for the rest of their season?But wait a minute, please. Not everyone on the ground was moving. For a moment the Durham players stood quite still on the battle-scarred outfield and that instant seemed to last for much longer than a moment until it became Steinbeckian in its significance. Could they have lost? Apparently, they could.John Hastings, who had taken 4 for 40, could surely not believe that all his mighty strivings had been for naught. The tall Australian had taken three wickets in an 11-over spell to reduce the home side to 31 for 5. In partnership with Chris Rushworth he had made Lancashire’s victory target – a mere 107 if you please – seem distant indeed. Only when 19-year-old Alex Davies joined Smith in a 48-run stand for the sixth wicket did batting seem a tolerably straightforward enterprise. Then Davies was lbw to Stokes, the third of Durham’s triumvirate of seamers, when the ball shot along this well-used Test wicket. 79 for 7.The England allrounder then removed both Chapple and Parry with quick, full deliveries to which they should have got forward. That, though, was much easier said than accomplished on this pitch. Stokes took three wickets in eight balls and roared his joy before being engulfed by his team-mates. Then Tom Bailey hoisted Hastings to Mark Stoneman at mid-off and Lancashire were 90 for 9. Kerrigan, a campaign veteran at 25, trooped out to join Smith, who was batting calmly and well in this summer of summers for him. At least, reasoned Kerrigan perhaps, he could do something now, instead of all that watching.So great was the tension in the long last session of this game that the morning and afternoon’s play seemed almost to fade from the memory. Yet that, too, was worthy of detailed recollection for Lancashire’s six-strong attack did well indeed, taking nine wickets for 128 to set up the prolonged dénouement.It had been thought on Sunday evening that Kerrigan would pose the main threat to Durham’s batsmen and so, to a degree, it proved. Yet while the slow left-armer claimed three of the first wickets to fall, two of them lbw as Keaton Jennings and Michael Richardson trusted their pads but readily than their bats, the scorecard shows that five Lancashire bowlers enjoyed success this memorable Monday.Nor was there any rapid collapse in the Durham innings such as those which later afflicted Lancashire. When Kerrigan who took the important wicket of Stokes, brilliantly caught by short leg Steven Croft from a full-blooded clip off the legs, the visitors were 103 for 5 and their lead was a mere 22.Each of the remaining Durham batsmen made some contribution towards that lead reaching three figures. Phil Mustard made a dozen before he was bowled round his legs by Parry to give the slow left-armer his first Division One wicket since 2009, which is a curious fact for a man who has played T20 cricket for England in the meantime.Durham went into lunch on 129 for 6 but took 80 minutes losing their last four wickets. Calum MacLeod was defeated by Bailey’s direct hit from cover, Hastings, having clubbed 16, edged Chapple to Davies and the ailing Ryan Buckley was taken at slip by Paul Horton off Croft. When last man Rushworth was comprehensively bowled by Bailey, Collingwood was left undefeated on 45, his runs carefully accumulated over 142 minutes of characteristic resistance. Like one of his County Palatine’s great Prince-Bishops, the Durham skipper’s authority is mighty and his skill impressive. And like his ten colleagues, he did not deserve to travel home defeated. So it must have been hard for him to do so.

Varun Chopra has been appointed Warwickshire’s new club captain after the retirement of Jim Troughton. Chopra has led the side for much of the season, with Troughton battling a chronic back condition that eventually forced an end to his playing career.Chopra was in charge as Birmingham Bears – Warwickshire’s T20 rebranding – claimed a first domestic T20 title last month. Warwickshire will also contest the final of the Royal London Cup on Saturday and are favourites to finish as runners-up in the Championship.”Varun has done an outstanding job as vice-captain and in deputising for Jim,” Dougie Brown, Warwickshire’s director of cricket, said. “His captaincy credentials have been proven by the team’s excellent results in recent months and he is the natural successor to lead the club.”Whilst Jim’s injury has resulted in his premature retirement from the game, he remains a key member of the team management as we prepare for the Royal London Cup Final at Lord’s and approach our final County Championship match next week.”Chopra, 27, has been a regular with the Lions but a poor season in the Championship – he has made 625 runs at 28.40 – has seen him lose ground as a potential Test opening partner for Alastair Cook, a position that remains a problem. Chopra has flourished since joining Warwickshire from Essex in 2009, passing 1000 first-class runs in each of the past three seasons. He was Warwickshire’s leading run-scorer in the T20 Blast and is currently second to Tim Ambrose in the 50-over competition.

When Sri Lanka’s players tried to engage Chris Jordan verbally, the most they got back was a stare, and maybe another bouncer

Andrew McGlashan at Old Trafford28-May-2014

Chris Jordan loves nothing more than hurling down a few bouncers, but is less bothered about hurling a few words at the batsmen along with them.He would prefer the more silent-assassin type role and it certainly worked a treat at Old Trafford as he bagged 5 for 29 to inspire England to a 10-wicket win as they bundled out Sri Lanka for 67. Jordan’s figures were the best by an England bowler at Old Trafford and the best for England since Chris Woakes’ 6 for 45 against Australia in 2011.In Durham, Sri Lanka appeared to try and ruffle Jordan with a few words and again at Old Trafford there were a couple of occasions when the experienced Mahela Jayawardene appeared to try to engage him. The most the Sri Lankans got back was a stare, and maybe another bouncer. Jordan sounded quite hopeful they would continue.”That kind of stuff doesn’t faze me,” he said. “If anything it gets me going a little bit more. I try to leave as much as I can on the field if not everything. I’ve always been quite an aggressive performer. Too much talking may distract me from my task, so I try to keep my eye on the prize. When you cross that line you are playing international cricket so you try to play as hard as possible.”After having injury problems earlier in his career, Jordan is now renowned for how he keeps himself in shape and gained a glowing appraisal from David Saker, the fast bowling coach.”He’s just an ultimate professional,” Saker told Sky Sports. “The way he prepares for every game, the way he looks after himself, he’s the ultimate professional. He’s fantastic to work with, he always wants to get better and he is getting better every game. He’s just been fantastic.”England appear to be pushing Jordan into the role of an impact bowler, utilising the pace which has discomforted some of Sri Lanka’s batsman, and he is keen to continue to make full use of the short balls available to him.”That’s something we spoke about so hopefully we can continue throughout the series. I want to be able to hit teams hard and use the short ball wisely because you are allowed two in an over. So with the extra man inside the circle I’m sure if the guys can get it up there they will try their best to use all two.”It was a simple decision for Man of the Match, as it was at The Oval when he played a central role in England’s victory at the start of the series. On that occasion it was his innings of 38 off 13 balls that played as much a part as his bowling, but today there was little chance of his batting being needed.England are expected to name their squad for the first Test against Sri Lanka a week on Thursday and only injury will prevent Jordan’s name being it. He was a strong favourite based on his Championship form for Sussex before this series but, even having backed that up, he refuses to let his mind wander.”Today I was concentrating on Old Trafford, now that is done we have to draw a line under that and move onto Lord’s. That’s my focus.” Whether Jordan wants to admit it or not, he is clearly one of the coming men of English cricket

ScorecardHamish Marshall scored an unbeaten half-century to shore up Gloucestershire’s lead•PA Photos

Gloucestershire sensed a first Championship victory of the season after compiling an imposing 351-run lead at the County Ground against Kent.Day two of the match saw Gloucestershire coast to 213 for 4 at the close of play, with Alex Gidman making 85 before succumbing to the bowling of Darren Stevens, while Hamish Marshall was not out on 66.The match had looked well poised after the home side were restricted to 252 in their first innings, only for Kent to be skittled for a paltry 114. Kent started the day on 33 for 6, still 219 runs behind, having lost six final-session wickets in a humiliating collapse.And while they faired moderately better when play resumed – resistance was offered by Sam Billings with 42 and Adam Ball’s 37 – they still fell too easily. Apart from Billings and Ball, no player was able to reach double figures, with James Fuller and Will Gidman spearheading Gloucestershire’s assault with four wickets each.Early hopes of gaining something from the match rose when Kent sent Chris Dent and Michael Klinger back to the pavilion cheaply, but Gloucestershire soon steadied the ship.William Tavare fired a rapid 27 before Gidman and Marshall began flailing Kent’s struggling attack with Stevens, who finished with three wickets, their only genuine threat. A first win in six games now beckons for Gloucestershire, who have two days to wrap-up victory.

ScorecardAli Murtaza picked up his second five-wicket haul in first-class cricket•K Sivaraman

KL Rahul stood at the corner of the crease briefly. Head down. After a minute he started to walk towards the dressing room. Uttar Pradesh were celebrating the final Karnataka wicket after HS Sharath offered no stroke against left-arm spinner Ali Murtaza, and was declared lbw.Rahul was not aghast at umpire Amiesh Saheba’s decision. He was surprised at how Karnataka’s lower order had decided to take charge when he, a specialist batsman, was on the cusp of a century.On the ball before Sharath got out, Abhimanyu Mithun had attempted a slog sweep but missed the line completely and was bowled. Mithun knew Sharath was injured and was not going to bowl and had been wearing a sling after hurting his right shoulder in the field on Thursday afternoon. It was important then that he be more resolute. Mithun banged the bat into the ground and then on to his pads, cursing his mistake.Rahul later admitted he was disappointed by Mithun’s response and had asked the fast bowler atone for his mistake by taking at least six or seven wickets. But it was not exactly Mithun’s fault alone. A combination of disciplined lines from Murtaza, a steadily wearing pitch with some uneven bounce and impatience from some of the specialist batsmen put the match in balance.UP had declared on the overnight score but the danger of the new ball in the first hour was still alive. It was Murtaza who got one wicket in each of his first two overs that created early dents. After Robin Uthappa was trapped lbw on the sixth delivery of the morning by Ankit Rajpoot, Murtaza had Vinay Kumar leg before on his fourth ball, and in the following over induced an edge off Abrar Kazi which was caught well by wicketkeeper Eklavya Dwivedi.The experiment to push two lower-order batsmen up, Rahul revealed, was to counter the new ball, but they embarrassingly fell to a slow bowler.For the second time in the match Karnataka were 15 or 3. Manish Pandey did not last long as Amit Mishra came in for his second spell. Pandey has gained popularity for being a second-innings player but today he went for a pre-meditated pull and was surprised by Mishra’s pace and bounce. The ball lobbed into the hands of Murtaza at mid-off.Although the pair of Karun Nair and CM Gautam showed grit initially, they could not show the resolve that was on display during their centuries in the first innings. Trying to push a leg-side delivery from Rajpoot, Nair played into the hands of Mukul Dagar at midwicket.Gautam showed a little impatience in dealing with Piyush Chawla, who had finally started to flight the ball more and keep the batsmen in check. Gautam stepped out against one such delivery, but only succeeded in hitting it towards short leg. Unfortunately for him, Dagar stretched his right leg to intercept the ball which ricocheted back to Dwivedi, who quickly knocked off the bails to run Gautam out.Rahul had remained unperturbed at the other end. Having taken a single off his third ball today, he did not score for the next 31 deliveries before punching Rajpoot to the cover boundary and then pulling him for another four. That pattern continued throughout his innings when Rahul would stay quiet for small periods and then make use of the poor lengths or lines.One of his best strokes came against Rajpoot late in the final session when he leaned in to a slightly fuller delivery on the off stump to drive it through covers for four to get into the 80s. Rajpoot had tested Rahul’s patience in every spell with an off-stump line.Unfortunately for Rahul, he was stranded on 92 as Murtaza quickly wrapped up the tail.”The 90s seem like it doesn’t like me too much. Hopefully we can win this game and I get another opportunity to get a big score,” Rahul said in jest.