The New York Yankees announced a key roster move on Tuesday, making the decision to designate starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco for assignment.
Carrasco has struggled throughout the first eight appearances of his Yankees tenure, which includes six starts and two relief outings. Across 32 innings on the mound, Carrasco has pitched to the tune of a 5.91 ERA and has surrendered seven home runs while striking out 25 batters.
His most recent appearance came on Sunday when he pitched 3 1/3 innings in relief, giving up five hits, two runs and a walk while striking out three batters.
2025 is Carrasco's 16th season in MLB, but the former Cy Young candidate has not lived up to the billing thus far, prompting the team to DFA him on Tuesday.
In a corresponding roster move, New York recalled Yerry de los Santos from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The 27-year-old right-handed pitcher owns a 1.74 ERA across 10 relief appearances in the minors this season, having recorded 11 strikeouts in 10 1/3 innings.
With Luis Gil, Gerrit Cole and Marcus Stroman on IL, it's not immediately clear who will take over the fifth spot in the Yankees' starting rotation. Clarke Schmidt is set to make a start on Tuesday against the San Diego Padres and Max Fried will be on the mound for the series finale on Wednesday.
Arsenal are fielding enquiries for a ‘frustrated’ star in their squad ahead of the looming January window, and Premier League rivals Man City are one of the clubs keen.
Arsenal play Aston Villa in crucial Premier League title clash
Arsenal travel to the Midlands this Saturday to take on an in-form Aston Villa — a fixture that could prove pivotal in the early title race.
The Gunners arrive in pole position atop the table, buoyed by a recent 2–0 win over Brentford that extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to a remarkable 18 games.
Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest
Athletic Bilbao 0-2 Arsenal
Arsenal 1-1 Man City
Port Vale 0-2 Arsenal
Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal
Arsenal 2-0 Olympiacos
Arsenal 2-0 West Ham
Fulham 0-1 Arsenal
Arsenal 4-0 Atlético Madrid
Arsenal 1-0 Crystal Palace
Arsenal 2-0 Brighton
Burnley 0-2 Arsenal
Slavia Prague 0-3 Arsenal
Sunderland 2-2 Arsenal
Arsenal 4-1 Tottenham
Arsenal 3-1 Bayern Munich
Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal
Arsenal 2-0 Brentford
Villa have surged into third thanks to a stunning 4–3 victory over Brighton in midweek, their sixth consecutive win across all competitions, so Unai Emery’s side will be no pushovers.
Historically, the matchup has been a tight affair. Across all competitions, the two clubs have met over 200 times — with Arsenal holding a slight edge.
However, in recent seasons, Villa have shown that they can be a thorn in Arsenal’s side.
The Villans completed a league double over Arsenal in 2023–24, including a 2–0 win in April that derailed Mikel Arteta’s title hopes and handed the Premier League crown to City.
Arteta will be fully aware of the danger they pose, especially on home turf, with Villa reigning victorious in five of their last seven home league games while boasting the joint-third best home record in the division.’
Declan Rice makes Cristhian Mosquera statement as Arsenal sweat over injury scare
Arteta is waiting on a definitive update.
ByEmilio Galantini Dec 4, 2025
To trot out the old cliché, every game is like a cup final for Arsenal right now, so Arteta will need every man at their very best against a Villa side flying high on confidence.
The north Londoners’ strength in depth, following a near-£270 million summer spend, has paid dividends amid the club’s injury woes.
It has even allowed Arteta to rest some key personnel amid the hectic festive calendar, like he did against Brentford, with right-back Ben White getting a rare start ahead of first-choice Jurrien Timber.
The Englishman has barely been given any game time this season thanks to Timber’s form, with an update now emerging on his future ahead of January.
Ben White 'frustrated' at Arsenal as Man City make January enquiry
As per TEAMtalk and journalist Graeme Bailey, White — once a regular starter — is growing ‘frustrated’ with his limited minutes.
The 28-year-old has made only a handful of appearances so far this season, prompting concern about his long-term future at the club.
That frustration hasn’t gone unnoticed beyond North London. City, now exploring options at right-back, have reportedly marked White as a strong candidate to reinforce Pep Guardiola’s squad.
The Sky Blues are said to be one of a few clubs who’ve made enquiries, alongside Marseille, Como and Atlético Madrid, but Arsenal’s stance is pretty clear.
Arteta, alongside club management, are poised to reject any proposals for White in the January window, even amid mounting interest. This is because they don’t want to weaken the squad in any way shape or form amid their title challenge.
From White’s perspective, the situation is increasingly uncomfortable.
Once viewed as a defensive mainstay, he now finds his opportunities severely curtailed, and media sources suggest he’s unwilling to spend extended periods on the sidelines.
As things stand, White remains at Arsenal, but the coming months could prove pivotal.
If this current trend continues, and if City or other suitors persist, the defender’s exit may well be one to watch in the summer instead.
Michael Neser has been added to the squad, and Brendan Doggett could be closing in on a Test debut in Perth
Andrew McGlashan15-Nov-2025Australia have suffered a huge blow ahead of the Ashes, with Josh Hazlewood ruled out of the opening Test in Perth with a hamstring injury three days after initially being cleared when he left the field during New South Wales’ Sheffield Shield game against Victoria at the SCG.Hazlewood will not travel to Perth this weekend, and Queensland seamer Michael Neser has been added to the squad, which has also lost Sean Abbott to a hamstring injury.Related
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Pat Cummins had already been ruled out of at least the opening Test as he recovers from a back injury.”Initial scans Wednesday were clear of muscle strain, however follow-up imaging today has confirmed the injury,” a CA statement on Saturday said. “Early imaging can occasionally underestimate low-grade muscle injuries.”The latest injury means that Brendan Doggett could be closing in a Test debut with even more onus now on Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland.The news of Hazlewood follows England having a scare around Mark Wood who went for a scan after reporting hamstring tightness of the first day of the warm-up game against the Lions in Perth although on Saturday the ECB said he had been cleared.Hazlewood, who sits on 295 Test wickets, had bowled superbly in the white-ball matches against India last month and again looked in good rhythm in his Shield outing. However, after completing his spell on the third morning, he told Steven Smith, who was captaining NSW and will lead Australia in Perth, that he was feeling some tightness in his hamstring and Smith told him to leave the field immediately.He walked to a clinic next door to the SCG to have a scan which, before the match had ended, came back clear. Cummins, who had been at the ground to see the physios before speaking at a commercial engagement, said Hazlewood had been in good spirits after the result.Last season, Hazlewood missed three of the five Tests against India, firstly because of a side strain and then a calf injury.Since 2014, Australia have only twice played a Test at home without Cummins and Hazlewood, but won on both occasions – against England in 2021 and West Indies in 2022 – which are also the two Tests Neser has played.Doggett, the South Australia quick, has been in excellent form since return from his own hamstring problem with 13 wickets in two matches. He was a traveling reserve for the World Test Championship final earlier this year and had been due to tour West Indies before injury ruled him out. If Doggett makes a debut in Perth he would become Australia’s third Indigenous men’s player and it would be the first time a men’s Test XI featured two Indigenous players, alongside Boland.Cummins has recently increased the intensity of his return to bowling with an eye on a potential return in Brisbane although that remains a race against time. He said he was operating around 90% during a spell in the SCG nets last week.”[The Gabba] is what we’re building towards,” Cummins said. “Hopefully by Perth, I’m up there near 100%, and then see where we’re at. It’s still pretty aggressive, going from nothing to trying to get ready for a Test match in four weeks. But we’re going to give it a good shot.”Australia’s pace-bowling depth is already being severely tested and further injuries would leave them scrambling for more options. Jhye Richardson has been named in the Cricket Australia XI to face England Lions and there is hope he could become an option later in the series as he returns from shoulder surgery. Xavier Bartlett is another who could come into contention.
Tottenham Hotspur fans are running out of patience with goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario after the Italian produced another error-strewn performance in his side's 3-0 defeat by Nottingham Forest. Vicario was booed by his own supporters in last month's loss to Fulham and is unlikely to win back the trust of the Spurs faithful after yet another disappointing display at the City Ground.
Forest run rampant over Spurs
With Spurs boss Thomas Frank under severe pressure, the last thing he needed was his goalkeeper to have an off day in a tricky away trip to the Midlands. With the scores level at 0-0 after 28 minutes, Vicario put his team-mate Archie Gray in a difficult spot with a bobbling pass to the edge of the area. The teenager was robbed by Ibrahim Sangare, who unselfishly squared to Callum Huson-Odoi to tap into an empty net and put Forest ahead.
The Italian’s day did not get any easier either and shortly after half-time, he was caught out by Hudson-Odoi again. The former Chelsea youngster picked the ball up by the left touchline before cutting back and sending a looping cross towards Igor Jesus at the back post. Vicario, unsure whether to remain on his line or to come and claim the cross, was caught in no-man's land and ended up missing the ball completely. The flailing goalkeeper was unable to stop the cross from curling all the way in and putting the hosts two goals ahead.
Sangara and Hudson-Odoi combined once again after 79 minutes to put the game beyond all doubt. Vicario could do little to stop Sangare's stunning strike into the far corner, but had played more than his fair part in causing the preceding damage.
After the game, Frank said to Sky Sports: “Of course, the first two goals are two mistakes, that happens. We need to work to be more consistent. It's two steps forward and a step back today.”
He added that he understands the fans’ disappointment, saying that “if you don't perform that's more than fair enough their frustration”.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportSpurs fans fume at Vicario
TSpurs fans took to social media to lambast Vicario, with many demanding the Italian be replaced by deputy Antonin Kinsky. The young Czech keeper has been largely overlooked for a starting berth by Frank since his appointment, but may now come into the team.
On X, @xAlexTHFC called Vicario a “complete disaster”, adding that “no serious team has a keeper like this.”
@thfcjorro tweeted: “Vicario might actually be the worst keeper in the league you know.”
On a similar vein, @owenthfc__ posted that “Vicario is a f*cking abomination” and @KrazeeOfficial said that “this guy is shit man”.
One Spurs fan is even beginning to consider switching sides following the disappointing result against Forest. @101Usman said that they were "slowly losing my love for Spurs this season" before adding: "A repeat of last season with loads of fuck ups. Vicario is a clown. Spurs are a bunch of let downs. Thomas Frank hasn’t got a clue. I’m supporting Manchester City."
Another erroneous day for Vicario
Vicario was at the centre of another Spurs defeat this season, having gifted Harry Wilson a chance to score an open goal from distance in the club's 2-1 defeat by Fulham last month. Spurs had found themselves 2-0 down to the Cottagers after just six minutes and it did not take much longer for the crowd to turn on the players – with Vicario taking much of the ire.
The Italian was the subject of jeers from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and after that game, Thomas Frank slammed his own fans for their supposed lack of respect. The Dane had said: “I didn't like that our fans booed at him straight after and a few times he touched the ball. They can't be true Tottenham fans because everyone supports each other when you are on the pitch.”
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Vicario may be relieved to have not been playing in front of his own supporters against Forest, but will count himself lucky if he remains in between the sticks for the club’s next game against Liverpool.
After another humiliating performance that has dented Tottenham's European aspirations, it's not beyond the realms of possibility that a new manager and goalkeeper find themselves lining up against Arne Slot next weekend.
Bryce Harper hasn't played since June 5 after he elected to go on the injured list for right wrist inflammation.
At the time, he landed just on the 10-day IL, but that stint has turned into over 20 days at this point. For weeks, Harper didn't offer more information about his return. Finally, on Friday, the Philadelphia Phillies star gave an estimated timeline for his awaited return.
Harper is going to start taking live pitches on Saturday, and as long as everything goes well, Harper could be back on the field on Monday for the matchup vs. the San Diego Padres, MLB's Paul Casella reported. Harper didn't specify which date he thinks he'll be back, but there's a good chance it'll be sometime next week.
The two-time NL MVP missed a few games at the end of May after he was hit on his right elbow by a pitch. He admitted that incident didn't help his ongoing wrist issues.
The Phillies are in a tight race for the lead of the NL East. They sit 0.5 games back from the New York Mets.
Ronald Acuna Jr. hit a ridiculous home run to towards the grassy knoll in right field at the A's temporary home stadium in Sacramento on Wednesday. Acuna reached a ball way outside the zone and hammered it for what was actually his second home run of the game.
His first was equally impressive for different reasons. First, he hit it a very long way. So far that it left the stadium So far that, hold on, is that a bus? Did he almost hit a bus? I think he almost hit a bus. You should be able to take the bus in Sacramento without having to worry about getting hit by a baseball.
As far as the whole major leaguers playing in a minor league stadium goes, being able to see a bus stop while the broadcast tracks a home run is right up there with grassy knoll in right field.
The Athletics will complete their first season in their temporary home of Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, Calif., against the Royals on Sunday.
Between their departure from their longtime home in Oakland and the move into their new stadium in Las Vegas expected by 2028, Sacramento is home. It may not feel that way, though, as they became known simply as the "Athletics" this season. The franchise's stopgap home is set to feel a bit more natural next season as they unveiled new alternate uniforms Sunday that proudly read Sacramento across the chest.
The new jerseys will seemingly replace the team's current gold alternates with the "A's" logo on the left chest. According to MLB.com's MartÃn Gallegos, the A's plan to wear their new Sacramento gold uniforms for every home Saturday game next season.
Just one of two MLB franchises without a City Connect uniform, the new jerseys are a no-brainer to further relate to their new city even if they will only be there for a couple more years. The Athletics' '25 campaign will come to a close Sunday as they finish the regular season near the bottom of the AL West with the Angels. There's plenty to be excited about, though, with strong rookie campaigns from Nick Kurtz and Jacob Wilson, plus the deadline deal where they acquired top prospect Leo De Vries by sending Mason Miller and JP Sears to the Padres.
Think back to the morning of the Fourth of July. Our nation’s birthday. Quintessential America. Barbecues. Burgers. Fireworks. Everything as you expect, including the Dodgers with the best record in baseball.
Now seems like a long time ago. Since then, the Dodgers have been as sorry as a sack of soggy charcoal briquettes: 12–21. Only the Nationals and the Rays have been worse.
Wait, the Dodgers? The $391 million payroll Dodgers? The same Dodgers who gobbled up so many high-profile free agents last winter we started asking, “Are the Dodgers good for baseball?”
Eight months later, now we’re asking, “Will the Dodgers ever play good baseball?”
They better figure it out quickly. Starting tonight, the Dodgers play six of their next 10 games against the smoking hot, deadline-fortified, first-place San Diego Padres.
What is wrong with the Dodgers? It’s time to dig in.
1. Maybe the Dodgers are just in a slump
All teams go through valleys. At some point in June, the Dodgers, Cubs, Mets, Astros and Yankees all had leads as big as 5 1/2 games. All gone.
But slumps this deep are rare for the Dodgers. In the past 30 years, here are the only seasons in which the Dodgers hit .236 and lost at least 21 games in a 33-game span:
Dodgers Seasons with 33-Game Span With 21+ Losses and Hitting .236 or Worse (Wild Card Era)
Year
Final Record
Postseason Result
2003
85–77
None
2010
80–82
None
2012
82–76
None
2017
104–58
Lost World Series
2025
?
?
I know you optimistic Dodger fans are thinking:
But the problems this year go deeper than 33 games. Let’s continue.
2. Dodgers don’t measure well against good teams
Los Angeles is 28–32 against teams that are .500 or better. Among the 12 teams in playoff position today, only the Tigers are worse against good competition.
To find the last Dodgers team that had a losing record against teams .500 and above, you must go back a decade, to 2015, when Don Mattingly was the manager, Andrew Friedman had just arrived as president of baseball operations—and the Dodgers were booted in the NLDS by the Mets.
That best record on the Fourth of July? Fool’s gold. The Dodgers were 14–1 against the Rockies, Marlins and White Sox. They proceeded to get swept by the Astros and then twice by the Brewers.
3. Dodgers are a poor team in defensive efficiency
This is shocking news.
What is defensive efficiency? It’s the measurement of how often a team turns batted balls into outs. I like this measurement because it does not isolate defense but reflects the unbreakable marriage between pitching and defense. A pitching staff that gets weak contact, for instance, makes the job easier for the defense.
This has been Andrew Friedman’s secret sauce. You can talk all you want about the Dodgers’ money, technology, scouting, international footprint, annoying speaker system at Dodger Stadium, whatever … turning batted balls into outs is what they do best under Friedman.
No more. Their amazing six-year year run of elite pitching combined with elite defense is over.
Dodgers MLB Rank in Defensive Efficiency
Year
Defensive Efficiency MLB Rank
2019
2
2020
2
2021
1
2022
1
2023
2
2024
2
2025
18
The Dodgers have posted their worst defensive efficiency rating in the past seven seasons in 2025. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images4. Dodgers pitchers and fielders share the blame
Dodgers pitchers allow the same average exit velocity this year as Rockies pitchers.
It continues an erosion of generating soft contact. Check out this decline.
Dodgers Exit Velocity Allowed
Year
Average MPH
MLB Rank
2022
87.4
1
2023
88.7
8
2024
88.9
17
2025
89.8
24 (tied with Rockies)
And of the Dodgers’ seven positions behind the pitcher, five of them rate average or worse, according to Outs Above Average (OAA).
Dodgers Weakest Defensive Positions by Outs Above Average (OAA)
Position
OAA
MLB Rank
Third Base
-7
24
Left Field
-6
22
Right Field
-5
21
First Base
-4
19
Shortstop
0
18
5. Dodgers don’t get enough starting pitching length
The Dodgers in recent years have redefined starter workloads. They pitch their starters with more rest and get them out quicker than any other team. They have taken this philosophy to a new extreme.
Dodgers Starters
Amount
MLB Rank
Starts on Four Days Rest
7
Fewest
Batters Faced Third Time Per Start
3.5
Fewest
Pitches Per Start
76
Fewest
Innings Per Start
4.6
Fewest
The result is that because of injuries and workload management none of their starters are in top form. Maybe they will be, come October.
6. Dodgers don’t have enough shutdown relievers
Manager Dave Roberts does not have a clear path to lock down games. This ranking is damning: the Dodgers and Yankees rank among non-contenders as allowing the highest OPS in high leverage spots.
Highest OPS Allowed in High Leverage, 2025
Team
OPS Allowed in High Leverage Spot
1. Rockies
.848
2. Nationals
.819
3. Angels
.808
4. Diamondbacks
.782
T5. Athletics
.774
T5. Marlins
.774
T7. Dodgers
.764
T7. Yankees
.764
9. White Sox
.754
So, who does Roberts trust? Here are his most used pitchers in high leverage:
Most Batters Faced in High Leverage, Dodgers 2025
Pitcher
Batters Faced
OPS in High Leverage Spot
Notes
1. Tanner Scott
89
.820
Injured List
2. Yoshinobu Yamamoto
78
.695
Starter
3. Alex Vesia
71
.694
.759 OPS by RHB
4. Ben Casparius
65
.784
4.78 ERA
5. Dustin May
59
1.084
Traded
Three years ago, the Dodgers adopted a paradigm shift. That year they went 51–21 in the second half to win 111 games, a franchise record. They were in the business of building superteams and putting the gas pedal to the floor to get the No. 1 seed.
What it got them was a first-round exit. The Padres sent the superteam home quickly. They held them to 12 runs and a .227 batting average in four games.
The Dodgers learned a lesson. No more maxing out. The north star became workload management. Win enough games to get to the postseason but make sure you get there with your pitchers healthy and with gas in the tank.
It worked last year, barely. Gavin Stone, who broke down, led the staff with 140 innings. But when Walker Buehler got the last out of the World Series, Kiké Hernandez, a position player, would have been the next pitcher if the Yankees scored the tying run.
This year feels like even more of a risk of for October, not grinding toward it. The Dodgers are the oldest team in baseball. They don’t turn batted balls into outs like they used to. And they don’t have the bullpen depth to withstand planned, abbreviated starts.
More than any other team, the Dodgers play the long game. It may work again. But two things have changed.
Now the Dodgers are playing from behind.
And the Padres, fortified by the trade deadline, are lighting it up like it’s the Fourth of July.
The Phillies were knocked out of the MLB playoffs in extra innings on Thursday night after a brutal error from reliever Orion Kerkering allowed the Dodgers to bring in the game-winning run.
While it is easy to point to Kerkering’s mistake as the moment that ended the Phillies’ season, the team had plenty of opportunities earlier in the game to make a play or have one break go their way that might have prevented the game from ever going into extras in the first place.
And according to starting pitcher Cristopher Sánchez, an umpire acknowledged one of those bad breaks. Per Lochlahn March of the , Sánchez said after the game that the umpire apologized to him for missing what should have been a called strike three on a 2–2 count against Alex Call in the bottom of the seventh.
Watching a replay of the pitch in question, you can clearly see it was a close call, but the ball did in fact hit the strike zone. On the mound, Sánchez knew he should have had the K and with it, two outs in the inning, and gave the ump quite a stare in response to the call.
Unfortunately for the Phillies, that base runner would prove to be the difference that brought the game to extra innings. After a second runner got on base, the Phillies pulled Sánchez to turn the ball over to closer Jhoan Duran. Philadelphia decided to intentionally walk Shohei Ohtani to load the bases with two outs, bringing Mookie Betts to the plate.
After working the count full, Betts was able to hold off a pitch that was high out of the zone, walking in the game-tying run.
Baseball is a game full of sliding-door moments, but had the Phillies gotten that strike called, they would have had two outs and no men on in the inning, and very possibly could have escaped unscathed, and then would have been six outs away from forcing Game 5 back in Philadelphia.
Instead, the Dodgers got the run they needed to extend the game. In extras, the Phillies bats didn’t heat up, and their defense made one mistake too many. A brutal way to see a season end.
There are a host of players who can shine over the next few weeks, but this collection could be right at the top
Annesha Ghosh20-Feb-2020Ellyse Perry (Australia)A great of the game, the former England captain Charlotte Edwards, believes Perry is “the greatest female player we’re ever going to see”. The assessment may put into perspective just how enormous the buzz might be around the leading women’s allrounder in a home World Cup, and how immense the pressure is for her to take Australia to the March 8 final at the MCG.A two-time ICC Cricketer of the Year and the 2019 Belinda Clark Medallist, the awards and accolades consolidate Perry’s ever-growing stature as a generational star as much as her incisive swing bowling at north of 115kph and the ability to wed power and technique with consistency in a line-up that boasts genuine depth down to No. 10.Besides, there’s the insatiable appetite for excellence: on some days, a one-legged Perry is all it takes to win a World Cup; on others, record figures of 7 for 22 show her at the peak of her powers. A key contributor in Australia’s tri-series title win last week at home, much of how Perry performs in the league stage may determine if the MCG will see two Perrys in action in the final, or if the record attendance the ICC has set out to attract will be a reality.Harmanpreet Kaur (India)The Harmanpreet Kaur India need in a World Cup season•BCCIWhat could dampen hosts Australia’s spirits in the tournament opener? What should New Zealand be wary of going into their face-off against India? The short answer is: (A) Harmanpreet (En)Kaur.Harmanpreet’s unbeaten 171 knocked Australia out at the 2017 ODI World Cup and, within the first 90 minutes of the 2018 T20 World Cup, New Zealand were on course for a league-stage exit, thanks to Harmanpreet’s maiden T20I ton. A third straight Harmanpreet blockbuster in as many world tournaments, against Australia or New Zealand in Group A, could decidedly ease India’s entry into the semi-finals for the second time in a row.India’s most-capped T20I player, and their first line of defence for their uncertain middle order, Harmanpreet heads into the T20 World Cup with scores of 12, 20*, 14, 28, 42* in the tri-series. A veteran of three WBBL seasons, her two unbeaten knocks at No. 4 were pivotal to India’s two wins in the tri-series en route to their runners-up finish. And it is this finisher’s role that the India captain will need to play to perfection at this World Cup, where a string of brisk 30-plus unbeaten knocks from Harmanpreet might be enough for India to go the distance.Sophie Devine (New Zealand)Sophie Devine pulls powerfully through the leg side•Getty ImagesThe New Zealand allrounder’s chart-topping 769-run tally and 19 wickets underpinned first-time finalists Adelaide Striker’s runners-up finish at the 2019-20 WBBL. Named Player of the Tournament and then captain of New Zealand in the absence of Amy Satterthwaite, Devine carried her rich vein of form into the Super Smash, the domestic T20 competition in New Zealand, where she averaged 52 in Wellington’s title-winning campaign.In the recently concluded home T20I series against South Africa, she smashed four 50-plus scores in the four games she played – the last one being a maiden T20I hundred – to become the first batter, male or female, to make five fifty-plus scores in a row in T20I cricket, having preceded that run with a 72 against India.Trailing Perry and compatriot Suzie Bates at No. 2 on the ICC T20I allrounder and batting rankings respectively, Devine is one of only three players to achieve the career double of 2000 runs and 50 wickets in both women’s T20Is and ODIs. Her imperious form augurs well for New Zealand, who could be unstoppable in Australian conditions, if opener Devine gets support from the rest of the line-up, especially #SmashSister Bates.Heather Knight (England)Heather Knight sweeps during her career-best•Getty ImagesAt the heart of England’s recent world tournament successes – the 2017 ODI World Cup win at home and the runners-up finish to Australia in the T20 World Cup the following year – has been the astute leader, key spin-bowling option, and middle-order lynchpin that is Heather Knight.In what’s set to be her third World Cup – across formats – as captain, and first one under new head coach Lisa Keightley, Knight remains key to England’s chances of making the semi-finals from a group that also features 2016 world champions West Indies, the formidable South Africa, T20 World Cup debutants Thailand, and Bangladesh.In the tri-series, Knight’s rotation of her bowlers was arguably the best among the three captains. With the bat, her dominance of India’s spinners and Australia’s pace attack was equally emphatic; she bettered her career-best in T20Is twice in as many days, with 67 against India and then 78 against Australia.Since the start of the 2019 Kia Super League, where she led Western Storm to their second title and finished with the third-most runs, Knight’s appears to have found a new gear in her batting. England will also rely on her to tap into her WBBL experience, with Knight having topped the run-charts for the Hobart Hurricanes this season.Marizanne Kapp (South Africa)Marizanne Kapp punches through the offside•Getty ImagesThe leader of South Africa’s highly regarded pace attack, Marizanne Kapp’s stocks as a batter have been on the rise for a while now. She was the leading run-scorer for South Africa in the 2018 T20 World Cup and had an impressive WBBL where she struck two half-centuries for the Sydney Sixers, averaging over 33. Her ability to score at a brisk rate and innovate is at the heart of her knack for chipping in with momentum-changing cameos.A sharp fielder, Kapp’s athleticism stems from dabbling in multiple sports, having represented her province in netball, athletics, biathlon and lifesaving. She is the only South African with a T20I hat-trick, and her new-ball partnership with Shabnim Ismail makes the South African duo arguably the most feared pace-bowling combination in women’s cricket.The Sixers’ leading wicket-taker 2019-20 season, Kapp specialises in applying the brakes and, save for this WBBL edition, has been the most economical bowler in all preceding four seasons of the tournament. At the World Cup, keep an eye out for the way Kapp sets up batters for the rest of the pace attack to snack on.