إسبانيول يُعلن تفعيل برشلونة الشرط الجزائي في عقد خوان جارسيا

خطا نادي برشلونة خطوة جديدة في تعزيز صفوفه، بعدما أبلغت رابطة الدوري الإسباني نادي إسبانيول رسميًا، بتفعيل قيمة الشرط الجزائي في عقد الحارس الشاب خوان جارسيا، تمهيدًا لانضمامه إلى البلوجرانا خلال سوق الانتقالات الصيفية.

وأفادت مجموعة “راستار”، المالكة لنادي إسبانيول، في بيان رسمي أنها تلقت يوم 14 يونيو إشعارًا من الدوري الإسباني يفيد بإيداع مبلغ 26.34 مليون يورو، وهو ما يمثل القيمة الكاملة للشرط الجزائي بعد احتساب معدل التضخم السنوي على المبلغ الأساسي البالغ 25 مليون يورو.

وبحسب البيان، فإن عملية انتقال جارسيا ستنعكس إيجابيًا على الوضع المالي للمجموعة، حيث ستُساهم الصفقة في تحقيق صافي أرباح لا يقل عن 18.75 مليون يورو بعد خصم الضرائب.

اقرأ أيضًا.. سبورت: برشلونة يُحدد سقف صفقة لويس دياز لن يتم تجاوزه

رغم أن الأموال لم تُحول بعد لحساب إسبانيول، إلا أن النادي تلقى الإشعار الرسمي، ويُنتظر خلال الأيام القليلة المقبلة أن تُستكمل الإجراءات الرسمية وتُمنح برشلونة الموافقة النهائية لتسجيل الحارس صاحب الـ23 عامًا في قائمته.

وتُعد هذه الصفقة ضربة ناجحة لنادي برشلونة في ظل وجود اهتمام سابق من أندية الدوري الإنجليزي، وعلى رأسها نيوكاسل وأستون فيلا، اللذين كانا مستعدين لدفع الشرط الجزائي لضم جارسيا، لكن اللاعب فضل الاستمرار في مدينة برشلونة والانضمام إلى فريق ينافس على البطولات الكبرى.

ووفقًا للتقارير الصحفية، سيُصدر جارسيا بيان وداع لجماهير إسبانيول خلال الساعات المقبلة، على أن يتم تقديمه رسميًا كلاعب جديد في صفوف برشلونة هذا الأسبوع، ليبدأ مشواره مع المدرب هانز فليك مع انطلاق فترة الإعداد للموسم الجديد.

ويُعد خوان جارسيا من أبرز الحراس الإسبان الصاعدين، ولفت الأنظار خلال الموسم الماضي بفضل تألقه اللافت مع إسبانيول، وهو ما دفع برشلونة لتسريع المفاوضات وحسم الصفقة في صمت، ضمن خطة شاملة لإعادة بناء الفريق وتعزيز مركز حراسة المرمى بعد رحيل بعض الأسماء المخضرمة.

Maresca thinks he's "fantastic": Boehly must sell £30m Chelsea flop ASAP

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca gave supporters a reason to be excited during his first few weeks in the role after seamlessly transitioning into life in West London.

The Italian lost his first game against Manchester City but led the Blues to a six-game unbeaten run, looking like the biggest challengers to runaway leaders Liverpool at one stage.

However, in recent months, the side have endured somewhat of a drop-off in form, slipping to fifth in the Premier League and 21 points off Arne Slot’s side with just 11 games remaining.

Qualifying for the Champions League would be a huge success in his first season in charge, giving him a platform to build on for the coming years during his tenure at the club.

If he is to build off his recent success at the Bridge, he needs to invest well once again this summer, replicating some of the deals which he’s overseen during his first season in the capital.

The impact of Maresca’s signings at Chelsea in 24/25

Forward Pedro Neto joined Chelsea in a £54m deal from Wolverhampton Wanderers over the summer, looking to add further firepower to the club’s already potent forward line.

The Portuguese international has since registered five goals and six assists in his 31 games for the club, including a phenomenal strike against local rivals Arsenal at the Bridge.

Neto wasn’t the only forward to move to West London last summer, with Jadon Sancho joining the Blues on loan with an obligation to buy from fellow Premier League side Manchester United.

The 24-year-old looked as though he would be a shrewd addition after his cameo off the bench for his debut against Bournemouth, but his performance levels have rapidly declined in recent weeks.

The former Borussia Dortmund ace has failed to register a goal or an assist in any of his last nine outings, putting his starting place under the Italian at risk.

However, despite the form of the aforementioned duo, one other summer addition has failed to deliver – with Boehly brutally needing to offload the big-money signing at the next opportunity.

The player who Boehly needs to offload this summer

As seen by the previous arrivals during Maresca’s first window in charge, owner Todd Boehly put trust in the new boss to make the additions he wanted to take the side to the next level.

Dewsbury-Hall

Such trust saw the Italian raid his former club Leicester City and bring Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall with him to West London after his time with the midfielder in their Championship-winning campaign last time around.

The 26-year-old registered 12 goals and 14 assists in his 44 league appearances in 2023/24, impressing at the heart of the Foxes midfield and playing a pivotal role in their immediate return to the Premier League.

As a result, Boehly forked out £30m to prise him away from the East Midlands outfit, with Maresca labelling him “fantastic” after securing a move for his services.

However, Dewsbury-Hall has struggled to impress for the Blues since his transfer, unable to dislodge the likes of Enzo Fernández and Moises Caidedo from their starting roles at the heart of the side.

Chelsea's KiernanDewsbury-Hallin action with Southampton's Kamaldeen Sulemana

He’s only registered eight league appearances to date, with only one of which coming from a starting role and subsequently relying on Europa Conference League minutes to showcase his talent.

The midfielder has registered two goals and one assist in his eight European outings, but ultimately, he hasn’t demonstrated enough quality for a player who cost £30m.

Dewsbury-Hall’s stats for Chelsea in the PL (2024/25)

Statistics (per 90)

Tally

Games played

8

Minutes played

180

Pass accuracy

89%

Dribble success

33%

Tackles won

50%

Fouls committed

1.5

Duels won

41%

Stats via FotMob

Numerous rumours emerged over a potential move for Dewsbury-Hall in January, but the boss reiterated his desire to keep hold of the Englishman, but he’s only featured for 105 minutes since the closure of the window.

As a result, Boehly needs to be brutal over the summer and cut their losses on the former Foxes star, ultimately preventing the Blues from losing a small fortune on the fee they forked out for his signature.

It’s a shame that the move to the Bridge hasn’t worked out for Dewsbury-Hall, but he needs regular minutes to recapture his form, with the funds potentially helping Maresca improve the side in other areas to allow them to reach the next level.

Chelsea's "monster" signing has become the new Werner under Maresca

Chelsea’s £52m star may have become their next Timo Werner, showing levels of inconsistency.

1 ByConnor Holden Mar 3, 2025

DDCA chief sacks senior selection committee after selection chaos

“Therefore, these committees are not only doing disservice to the DDCA but also to the game of cricket,” Rohan Jaitley wrote in an email to some of the officials

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Jan-2023

Dhruv Shorey has been scoring plenty of runs despite the off-field issues around Delhi cricket•PTI

Rohan Jaitley, the Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) president, has sacked the state’s senior selection committee a day after reports of infighting within the panel and “dubious selection” emerged. He has voiced out his “disapproval of the manner in which the men’s selection committee is discharging its duties”.On Tuesday, selectors Gagan Khoda, the committee chief, and Mayank Sidana had a public fallout, leading to Sidana staging a walkout of a meeting to pick Delhi’s Under-25 squad for the upcoming CK Nayudu Trophy fixture. The pair is also believed to have disagreed on a number of selections made for Delhi’s Ranji Trophy squad for their away game against Saurashtra in Rajkot, which they lost by an innings and 214 runs inside three days.In sharp focus was their decision to hand Ayush Badoni, a middle-order batter, a first-class debut as an opener and drop regular wicketkeeper Anuj Rawat. Delhi are currently second-last in Group B, with no wins in four matches.Related

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For now, DDCA’s Cricket Advisory Committee comprising Nikhil Chopra, Gursharan Singh and Reema Malhotra will select the team for the remainder of the season.”The issue of manner in which players are being selected and replaced at the drop of a hat has become talk of the town,” Jaitley wrote in an e-mail to DDCA’s apex council and CAC members. “Recently in a meeting, it was informed that a replacement was sent for a senior player who was stated to be injured, the replacement while reaching there was also declared to be injured and another replacement was sent.”Jaitley also expressed his displeasure at the selection committee picking 20-22 players when BCCI’s directive mandates just 15 squad members traveling for reach game.”Despite clearly informing the committee that the number of players shall be restricted to 15-16 players, the committee has time and again recommended 20-22 member squad for each team,” Jaitley wrote. “Therefore, these committees are not only doing disservice to the DDCA but also to the game of cricket.”Jaitley was also “hurt” at Delhi’s shrinking talent pool and “absolute lack of planning” on the selectors’ part. Delhi failed to qualify for the knockouts of the Vijay Hazare Trophy earlier this season and were beaten by Vidarbha in the quarter-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in T20s. Their Ranji campaign is all but over just halfway into the league phase.”There was a time when Indian team would have at least four to five Delhi players,” Jaitley wrote. “The situation today is such that we cannot name even a single player whom we perceive as a potential candidate for the national team.”The absolute lack of planning for Delhi Cricket is apparent on the face of it more so with regard to the vision and future course as discussed and planned…It is unfortunate that the Selection committee has shown scant commitment to the same.”Jaitley also questioned the manner in which the coach of Delhi’s Under-25 team, Pankaj Singh, wasn’t permitted to sit in the selection committee meeting by the secretary.”To my mind, it is most important not only that the head coach attends each and every selection committee meeting, his views must also be taken into consideration before taking any final decision on the selection,” he said. “This attains much importance once the selectors wash their hands off by commenting that ‘we select team and the coach selects the playing eleven’.”

Qual resultado o Bahia precisa para avançar na Copa do Brasil?

MatériaMais Notícias

O Bahia volta a campo pela Copa do Brasil nesta terça-feira e o adversário será o Athletico, na Arena da Baixada.

– VEJA A TABELA DA SÉRIE B

O Tricolor foi superado no primeiro duelo e agora precisa reverter a vantagem do adversário em Curitiba.

Por conta do revés de 2 a 1, o time de Enderson Moreira precisa vencer o Athletico por dois gols ou mais de diferença.

Em caso de triunfo por vantagem simples, o Bahia leva a decisão da vaga para a temida cobrança de pênalti.

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Zagueiro Rodrigues, do Grêmio, tem situação sondada por outros clubes

MatériaMais Notícias

Após perder espaço entre os titulares do Grêmio ainda no início da Série B, o zagueiro Rodrigues teve a sua situação sondada pelo futebol de Portugal e também por uma equipe do Brasileirão, que tem o nome mantido em absoluto sigilo.

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>Técnico do Manchester United condena atitude de Cristiano Ronaldo

A informação, divulgada pelo portal ‘ge’, apontou que a ideia das abordagens, mesmo que em caráter inicial, trataram a possibilidade do jogador de 24 anos ser cedido em regime de empréstimo.

Desta forma, a diretoria do Imortal não se empolgou com as negociações já que, nesses moldes, o clube não pretende se desfazer do atleta. Ainda mais pelo fato de que, diante da situação financeira do clube em aliviar a folha salarial e encorpar os cofres, a ideia é ouvir com maior apreço propostas de venda imediata.

+Confira quem seu time ainda quer no mercado da bola

Rodrigues chegou ao Tricolor gaúcho em 2018, proveniente do ABC, e foi agregado inicialmente ao Time de Transição antes de receber as primeiras oportunidades na equipe principal. Na época, mais precisamente em 2019, Renato Portaluppi ainda era o técnico.

De lá pra cá, o defensor acumulou 91 partidas disputadas, com quatro gols marcados e a conquista de cinco títulos: o tetracampeonato do Gauchão e a Recopa Gaúcha desta temporada.

Moody: 'Rashid at his best when he is facing ten or less balls'

Rashid’s former coach at Sunrisers says players like him are “always involved in the game at the hottest point”

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Apr-20232:46

Moody: Players like Rashid are always involved in the hottest moments of the game

Want to get the best out of Rashid Khan, the batter? Don’t let him face more than 10 balls, says Tom Moody, who was with Rashid’s former team Sunrisers Hyderabad in different capacities from 2013 to 2022 (except 2020), including Rashid’s IPL debut in 2017.Moody’s observation came after Gujarat Titans’ last-over win against Chennai Super Kings in the opening IPL game, in which Titans needed 23 to win from the last 12 balls. Rashid turned that around by smashing a six followed by a four off Deepak Chahar to bring it down to eight needed from six, which Rahul Tewatia scored with more boundaries in the last over. Rashid’s impact? Ten off three with a strike rate of 333.33, after he had already claimed 2 for 26, including the big wickets of Mooen Ali and Ben Stokes.”The reality is that he is at his best when he is facing ten or less balls,” Moody said on ESPNcricinfo’s T20 Time:Out show. “That’s when he is the greatest threat. But if he’s suddenly coming in the tenth over, it can be a totally different situation for him to unpack, so he’s really really dangerous from the seventeenth over onwards.”Related

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“Players like Rashid Khan are always involved in the game at the hottest point. The first moment he entered the game was in the powerplay when the game was running away from them. He bowled an over, he took a wicket.”So again, critical time, put in the hotspot, he does the job.””End of the game, into the hotspot with a different skillset with bat in hand, not ball in hand and does what Rashid’s doing more increasingly and that is finding a way to hit a six, hit a four and suddenly when it is getting a little bit tight and everyone’s tense on the bench, he’s quickly turned it on its head within two or three balls.”Rashid was Titan’s most economical bowler on the night and dismissed Stokes for the fourth time in T20s, in 25 balls while conceding just 21 runs. Moeen, on the other hand, was Rashid’s first powerplay wicket in the IPL since 2021. He had bowled six wicketless overs in the powerplay last season.”He [Rashid] is such a valuable player because he is a genuine matchwinner that does impact at critical times,” Moody said.

مدرس بدرجة لاعب كرة.. كريستيان جراي بعد تسجيله هدف أوكلاند سيتي أمام بوكا جونيورز: لحظة سريالية

عاش كريستيان جراي، لاعب فريق أوكلاند سيتي، لحظة درامية في حياته بعدما سجل هدفًا في مباراة الأمس ضد بوكا جونيورز، في بطولة كأس العالم للأندية.

وتلاقى الفريقان في إطار منافسات الجولة الثالثة من دور مجموعات البطولة، المُقامة حاليًا في أمريكا.

وانتهت المباراة بالتعادل الإيجابي بين بوكا جونيورز وأوكلاند سيتي، بهدف لمثله، حيث ودعا المنافسات سويًا، في حين تأهل بنفيكا وبايرن ميونخ من المجموعة الثالثة.

وشهدت المباراة تسجيل هدف من جانب أوكلاند سيتي، عن طريق كريستيان جراي، وهو الأول للفريق النيوزيلندي في تلك البطولة.

وودع أوكلاند سيتي البطولة بشكل رسمي منذ الجولة الماضية بعدما خسر بستة أهداف دون رد أمام بنفيكا، وسبقها هزيمته على يد بايرن ميونخ بعشرة أهداف نظيفة.

ورغم ذلك، احتفل كريستيان جراي بهدفه بشكل مثير، مع زملائه في الفريق والجماهير الداعمة في المدرجات.

يأتي هذا مع العلم أن معظم لاعبي أوكلاند سيتي لديهم وظائف أخرى، حيث أنهم ليسوا لاعبين احترافيين، فعلى سبيل المثال يعمل كريستيان جراي كمدرس في مدرسة محلية، واضطر إلى الحصول على إجازة للمشاركة في البطولة.

وتحصل كريستيان جراي، صاحب الـ28 عامًا، على جائزة رجل مباراة أوكلاند سيتي وبوكا جونيورز.

وقال جراي، في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “tycsports” الأرجنتينية: “إنه أمر سريالي، الأهم هو إسعاد النادي، إنه طريق طويل وشاق”.

وواصل: “أنا من بلدة صغيرة بعيدة عن هنا، أنا مذهول بعض الشئ، كما قلت، إنه أمر سريالي، لم أستوعبه بعد، أعرف ما يعني ذلك للنادي، هذا ما يجعله مميزًا للغاية”.  

وأضاف: “إنها أهم لحظة في مسيرتي، إنها تعني الكثير للنادي، نحن نادِ صغير للغاية، أنا سعيد جدًا بالهدف وذلك التعادل، لقد استعدنا بعض الاحترام، بالتأكيد شئ كبير للنادي”.

واسترسل: “كما تعلمون، نحن نعتمد هنا على المتطوعين، ليس لدينا الكثير من المال، لذا أنا سعيد لأن الفريق سعيد، النادي يستحق ذلك بالفعل، أنا سعيد من أجل اللاعبين”.

واختتم: “أنا لا أحب أن أكون مركز الاهتمام، أترك ذلك للآخرين، ولكن نعم، هناك الكثير من المشاعر بالفعل”.

ولا يتقاضى لاعبو أوكلاند سيتي أي رواتب مقابل مشاركتهم في المباريات، ويحدد القانون المحلي في بلادهم حدًا لكل لاعب يزيد قليلًا عن 90 دولارًا أمريكيًا أسبوعيًا لتغطية النفقات الأساسية، مثل اشتراكات النادي الرياضي.

وتمثل المشاركة في بطولة كأس العالم للأندية، بنسختها الجديدة، فرصة عظيمة أمام أوكلاند سيتي من أجل تحقيق انتعاشة مالية.

وينص فيفا على حصول كل فريق من الفرق المشاركة في البطولة على جائزة مالية، تتفاوت حسب حجم القارة، وبالنظر إلى كون أوكلاند سيتي يتبع أوقيانوسيا فإنه سيظفر بجائزة قدرها 3.58 مليون دولار أمريكي نظير مشاركته.

كما سيحصل على جائزة قدرها مليون دولار أمريكي جراء تعادله في مباراة في دور المجموعات، وذلك أمام بوكا جونيورز أمس. 

Arsenal talks for Zubimendi stall as Berta now eyes bargain £34m alternative

Arsenal talks for Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi have hit a stumbling block, with new sporting director Andrea Berta now thought to be handed a cheaper alternative.

Arsenal in negotiations to sign Martin Zubimendi since January

During the January transfer window, news broke from The Mail that Arsenal had entered advanced negotiations for Zubimendi.

Berta "will try" to sign £160k-per-week star amid new Arsenal transfer plan

The Italian is set to orchestrate an ambitious project.

ByEmilio Galantini Mar 13, 2025

The Spain international actually rejected a move to Premier League rivals Liverpool last summer (BBC), but Mikel Arteta and co weren’t turned off by this and began attempting to lure him to the Emirates Stadium this winter.

Arsenal’s next five Premier League games

Date

Chelsea (home)

March 16th

Fulham (home)

April 1st

Everton (away)

April 5th

Brentford (home)

April 12th

Ipswich Town (away)

April 20th

Arsenal have been attempting to agree a pre-summer deal for Zubimendi since the last transfer window, according to various reports, and there are now even suggestions that Berta wants to partner the 26-year-old with Newcastle United star Bruno Guimaraes in a complete revamp of Arteta’s midfield (Eduardo Burgos).

Fabrizio Romano previously stated that Arsenal are planning to trigger Zubimendi’s £51 million release clause this summer, but they still need to convince the player. Arteta is thought to have a key role in swaying the midfielder, while The Athletic have reported that Arsenal hope to have this deal fully agreed before the next window.

However, since these plethora of reports heavily linking Zubimendi with an Arsenal switch, it appears talks haven’t yet advanced enough to seal his signature ahead of the 2025/2026 season.

With Jorginho and Thomas Partey out of contract this summer, Arteta will soon need a world-class replacement for either one of the duo, but it appears that man might not be Zubimendi after all.

Arsenal talks for Martin Zubimendi stall as Berta eyes Morten Hjulmand

According to CaughtOffside, Arsenal have hit a roadblock in talks to sign Zubimendi, with the Gunners actually unprepared to fork out his release clause after all. Therefore, it is now a possibility that Berta will move on to alternative targets for the engine room, and one of them could be Sporting CP midfielder Morten Hjulmand.

Denmark international Morten Hjulmand

The Denmark international’s contract actually includes a more expensive release clause, set at £67 million, but it is thought that Berta could seal his signature for much less – a fee of around £34 million.

Hjulmand has been a mainstay for Sporting in the Primeira Liga this term, scoring two goals and assisting two others in 20 league starts, while averaging an impressive 91.1 per cent passing accuracy and ranking as one of their best-performing players by average match rating per 90 (WhoScored).

The 25-year-old currently captains Sporting and played a key role for Ruben Amorim last season, helping the Portuguese heavyweights win their 20th Primeira Liga title, so he could be a very astute option.

Real Madrid e Juventus estariam atentos aos passos de Vitor Roque

MatériaMais Notícias

Nome com início de trajetória destacada no Athletico-PR, as atuações do atacante Vitor Roque já foram suficientes para chamar a atenções de dois clubes gigantes no futebol europeu como Real Madrid e Juventus.

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>Saiba quais são os elencos mais valiosos da Premier League

Ao menos, essa foi a informação publicada pela jornalista Nadja Mauad, em seu blog no ‘ge’, apontando que representantes das duas equipes fizeram sondagens para entender a viabilidade de contratar o avante de 17 anos de idade.

No caso da equipe espanhola, o caráter de observação teria atingido um patamar ainda mais elevado, fazendo com que o Real enviasse até o Brasil olheiros para observarem, in-loco, os desempenhos do atleta formado na base do Cruzeiro.

Tendo 19 aparições com seis gols assinalados em 2022, Vitor Roque se tornou um verdadeiro “xodó” no elenco do Furacão e, especialmente, aos olhos do técnico Luiz Felipe Scolari. Além disso, a análise da própria diretoria, tanto no aspecto técnico como no possível retorno financeiro, é das mais otimistas.

Nâo à toa, para sua contratação, o Athletico-PR investiu a maior quantia de sua história para comprar 100% dos seus direitos junto ao Cruzeiro em vínculo com validade até 2027. Além disso, o Furacão se precaveu do assédio vindo de clubes fora do Brasil e estipulou um alto valor de multa rescisória: 100 milhões de euros, algo que equivale a R$ X milhões na atual cotação.

Lewis Hill hundred steers Leicestershire as Zaman Akhter looks lively

Draw looms after captain’s hundred drags visitors close to first-innings parity

ECB Reporters Network13-Jun-2023

Lewis Hill’s century underpinned Leicestershire’s first innings•Getty Images

Lewis Hill maintained concentration in energy-sapping heat to score his seventh first-class century as Leicestershire battled for first-innings parity on the third day of their LV= Insurance County Championship match with Gloucestershire at Bristol.The visiting skipper’s 103 occupied nearly five and a half hours and led his side to a total of 350 in reply to 368. Rishi Patel cracked 59 off 70 balls, while Louis Kimber contributed 34 before being given out for obstructing the field.Seamer Zaman Akhter was the most successful Gloucestershire bowler with four for 33 from 17 overs in only his third first-class match. By the close, the hosts had made nine without loss in their second innings and a draw looks by far the most likely outcome tomorrow.A sweltering day began with Leicestershire 23 without loss. Openers Patel and Sol Budinger set about the task of reducing the deficit of 345 in positive manner.Patel looked in prime form, timing the ball sweetly and pulling a six off Tom Price as the pair brought up fifty in the seventh over of the morning.They looked set to build a significantly larger stand when, with the total 66, Budinger, on 21, aimed an ugly cross-batted swing at a wide delivery from Akhter and edged to wicketkeeper James Bracey.Patel struck fours off successive deliveries from Danny Lamb to reach an impressive 56-ball half-century and followed up with a straight six off Zafar Gohar’s first over, the 19th of the innings.It was a surprise when Patel fell in the following over, edging a defensive shot off Akhter to second slip with the score on 85. A watchful Hill took 24 balls to get off the mark, before sweeping two fours off Gohar.Akhter’s initial five-over spell from the Ashley Down Road End finished with figures of two for five, reward for the 24-year-old generating sustained pace and bounce.At lunch, the scoreboard read 132 for two off 37 overs, with Hill unbeaten on 34. The afternoon session was interrupted at just after 2.15pm by a fire alarm, triggered by the effects of the high temperatures, which resulted in the pavilion being evacuated.Among those required to leave the building were the scorers, so play was held up. But after a ten-minute delay, normal service was resumed.Colin Ackermann contributed 21 to a stand of 66 with Hill before cutting at a wide delivery from Akhter and edging to Ben Charlesworth at first slip.Two runs off Tom Price took Hill to a half-century off 108 balls, with six fours, out of a total of 182 for three. Slowly but surely, Leicestershire moved to within striking distance of their opponents’ first-innings total.They lost former Gloucestershire player Peter Handscomb for 25 with the score on 193 when off-spinner Ollie Price squeezed a delivery through his back-foot defence to clip off stump.But by tea Kimber had helped the indefatigable Hill add 40 for the fifth wicket and their team looked comfortably placed at 233 for four.The pair took the score to 258 before Kimber, on 34, departed in unusual fashion, given out after playing a delivery from off-spinner Ollie Price defensively into the ground, up onto his shoulder and then flicking the ball away with a hand.Price immediately appealed for obstruction and umpires Graham Lloyd and Paul Baldwin consulted before quickly sending Kimber on his way.Hill had an anxious moment on 83 when he played a delivery from Tom Price with the second new ball to gully and was called for a suicidal single by Rehan Ahmed, Miles Hammond’s throw to the bowler’s end lacking the necessary accuracy to run him out.It was all the assistance Hill required to move to three figures off 205 balls, with 12 fours. But Akhter wasn’t finished and produced a brute of a short ball, which Ahmed, having breezed to 28 off 32 balls, could only fend to second slip.Hill’s long vigil ended when he gave a return catch to Ollie Price and Gohar quickly sent back Chris Wright and Callum Parkinson. But Tom Scriven’s 30 before falling lbw to Ollie Price (three for 40) ensured a third batting point for Leicestershire.

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