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Is momentum in cricket real?Captains talk about it in earnest. Commentators go one step further, looking for the actual tipping point. It becomes part of the answer to why a player is in form and can even lay out why he isnt. It impacts a sides performance no matter the format. It even supersedes arguments such as conditions being different or that not all people tend to be affected by something in the same way.Clearly, physics was never big enough to hold momentum all to itself and having transcended into the sporting arena, it has become a buzzword that nobody can escape.In Rajkot, Virat Kohli said momentum sort of defines if you have an advantage of a disadvantage as a team. By that logic, can England consider themselves as being on top going into the Visakhapatnam Test? They made more runs in Rajkot. They took more wickets. They even took the awards. Assuming momentum is as powerful as everyone says, perhaps.Only, before the series began, India had crushed New Zealand, a team that seemed well-equipped to handle spin-friendly conditions. They hadnt lost a Test in over a year and the last time they did so at home was in 2012. If momentum was such an irresistible force, Kohli and his men shouldnt have been given the scare they were. Besides, theyve insisted it wasnt a scare. That tense situations like being six down with 10 overs left on a fifth-day pitch are a learning experience. You can imagine how desperately disappointed they must have been as kids when school was out.Momentum seems to have a tendency to vary with points of view as well. Alastair Cook is buoyed by the strength of Englands performance in the opening Test of one of the toughest series of his career. Kohli believes he will get a track that is conducive to Indias strengths so he is barely bothered about the events in Rajkot. Ask them who has the momentum, both men, would likely say they do. Makes sense. Not.Look at the things that have changed. India have brought back their first-choice opener. KL Rahul comes into the second Test on the back of a first-class century which not only points to his form but importantly establishes that he has recovered well from a hamstring injury. On the other hand, England are worried over the availability of Chris Woakes, who has been among their best performing players since the start of their home summer.Then there is the surface, which may start out better than hoped but would certainly deteriorate a lot quicker than the one at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Ground. R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have exploited such conditions in the past. All they need is one to spin big. That combined with their ability to undercut the ball and make a few go straight has led many a batsmen to confusion. It is not an easily replicable skill. A spinner hoping for as little deviation as possible has to avoid the seam hitting the deck. Adil Rashid, Moeen Ali and Zafar Ansari may have made a fine start to the series, but can they match the Indians tricks? None of them is experienced enough in this format to carry a bowling attack.Finally, the batting. It is never black and white in touch conditions, which arguably, neither of these sides has had to deal with so far. Visakhapatnam - from day three onwards - appears set to remedy that. So defensive techniques need to be tight. Partnerships become crucial for any time a new batsman comes in, the likelihood of him getting out quickly may as well be a blaring red light on top of his head.Even if someone is in form, he has to be mindful of the ways in which the bowler is targeting him. Just because he made a hundred in the last innings doesnt give him the right to pass go and collect 200 the next time. Monopoly rules sadly dont apply in cricket.All these factors - the pitch, each teams plans, each individuals plans, the outcome of the toss - dispute the impact momentum can have across matches. Within a match then. Does one team pulling ahead immediately set them up in a match? Four years ago, in Ahmedabad, Cook made a resoundingly defiant 176 while following-on which forced the Indian bowlers to tire themselves out and may even have had a bearing on their potency in the next Test in Mumbai.Hard work, skill, and just that little bit of chance, make up a cricket match. Momentum - whatever it is - is a far weaker influence.Paul George Shoes Free Shipping . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Paul George Shoes Deals . The (11-11-4) Jets are seventh in the Central Division with 26 points. Fifth place Dallas and sixth-seeded Nashville also have 26 points, but the Stars have three games in hand on Winnipeg while Nashville has two. https://www.cheappaulgeorgeshoes.com/ . LOUIS -- Cardinals cleanup hitter Allen Craig says hes recovered from a foot injury and ready to be put on St. Paul George Shoes For Sale .Y. -- Jayna Hefford scored the winning goal Friday as Canada survived a scare with a 4-3 win over Sweden at the Four Nations womens hockey tournament. Paul George Shoes From China .com) - The game was all punts and field goals before Kodi Whitfields catch.JP Duminy still has designs on becoming a full-fledged allrounder for South Africa, especially in shorter formats. After his career-best 4 for 16 in the one-off match against Ireland, Duminy admitted he has been working on his bowling and hopes it will be used more in future.I want to be able to contribute a lot more, especially in the shorter formats, Duminy said. I want to be able to bowl 10 overs in a one-day game and four overs in a T20. That will also help the team in terms of how we go about the dynamic.Duminy has bowled 10 overs in an ODI four times before, always with success. Against Australia in Sydney in January 2009, Duminy took 1 for 52, in the return series at home in Johannesburg that April, he took 3 for 48. Four years later, in a Champions Trophy match against India in Cardiff, Duminys returns were 1 for 42 and later that year against Sri Lanka in Pallekele, he kept things tight with 0 for 34.Although Duminy has not been seen much with the ball in ODIs this year - he has played 11 matches and bowled in six of those, totalling 23 overs - he was asked to do the job more in 2015. In 17 matches, Duminy only didnt bowl in once and he bowled more than five overs nine times.Should Duminy become a genuine allrounder, he will join a slew of current South African limited-overs with dual ability. Wayne Parnell, Dwaine Pretorius, Andile Phehlukwayo, Chris Morris (currently injured) and to a lesser extent Farhaan Behardien can all offer both disciplines, which stand-in captain Faf du Plessis said will be key to South Africas hopes of winning trophies. Weve always said that we really need allrounders to come through to make the balance of our team easier, du Plessis had said, before the Irelaand match.ddddddddddddBut team balance is on du Plessis and Duminys minds for other reasons, and in another format. With AB de Villiers out of action for the next two months as he undergoes elbow surgery, both du Plessis, who is likely to captain, and Duminy can consider their Test places safe after they were dropped at different stages of last season.They would not have feared as much in shorter formats, although they have both also come under fire there too. Duminys unbeaten 52 against Ireland was his first half-century in 12 ODI innings dating back to July last year and while du Plessis has scored three fifties in his last nine innings, he is often criticised for a slow strike-rate, something which was evident in the Ireland game.For the first seven overs of du Plessis time at the crease, South Africas run rate slowed significantly: it was 6.6 when he came in at the start of the 25th, and the team scored at a rate of 4.1 for the next seven. That was likely the difference between a score of 400 and a score of 350 - which anyway did not matter in the end given the margin of defeat - but Duminy has identified that period as an area in which South Africa need to be more proactive.Its an area of the game we have identified to improve on in one-day cricket. Weve discussed a few options of how we can go about it better, Duminy said. It depends on how many wickets are down and the situation of the game, but it is a crucial part in terms of winning big games. Capitalising on that period. Weve spoken about it, weve put plans in place, now weve got to put in the performance. ' ' '