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Twin spin, batting big and being wary of how a deteriorating pitch can dictate the pace of play. Australias coach Darren Lehmann highlighted these areas as key battlegrounds in the series against Sri Lanka, as the touring team moved out of their initial Colombo base to prepare for the first Test match in Kandy.Steve OKeefes 10-wicket haul opposite Nathan Lyon has more than likely vaulted him back into the Test XI after he missed the tour of New Zealand, particularly as Lehmann and the selection chairman Rod Marsh are expecting a sparsely grassed surface when the series begins on July 26. They also expect pitches that will start out flat before deteriorating rapidly at the back end of each match, and can foresee Sri Lanka trying to test the patience of an aggressive batting line-up by blocking the boundaries. To lose patience is to lose the battle.You play the conditions on each game, so for us it did start to turn a lot [at P Sara Oval], which is pleasing, our spinners exploited that very well, so the conditions theyre learning to bowl in is pretty important as the Test matches wear on here in Sri Lanka, Lehmann said. Theyre pretty good wickets to start with, and thats the challenge for us, going big and making big runs.We know that Sri Lanka will defend a lot once batters are in, so its going to take a lot longer to get your runs if that makes sense. Weve spoken about the need to bat long periods of time is going to be key, which weve done pretty well to be fair over the last little while, but the challenge is to do it here. Knowing the game is going to speed up as the wickets deteriorate, thats going to be important to be ahead of the game in the Test series, but really happy with where everyones at. Our batters have a big role to play and our bowlers were probably a little bit rusty in the first innings but pleased we got through, theres no injury concerns and away we go.Lehmann spoke warmly of OKeefe and also Lyon, who was recovering from illness over the course of the tour match, and is set to play a central role in the same country he made a memorable Test debut back in 2011. Significantly, Lehmann pointed to the use of tandem spin, turning the ball in opposite directions, as something that would be vital not only in Sri Lanka, but also India next year.Hes been excellent for NSW, had a lot of success in Shield cricket, his 200th first-class wicket today so pleased for him, Lehmann said of OKeefe. Hes worked really hard, hes a really lively, buzzy character for us and played exactly the role we want him to play over here in this game. Bats really well, fields really well and complements Nathan really well, spinning the other way.We think that [twin spin] is the way to go. India do it there with Jadeja and Ashwin and most teams have a spinner going both ways, so for us thats important.A conclusion drawn by Lehmann and the team performance manager Pat Howard from unsuccessful recent tours to India and the UAE to play Pakistan was that touring sides needed to spend as much time as possible in unfamiliar climes before walking out on day one of the series proper. To that end, the Australians have followed an internal practice fixture with the match in Colombo, and will now have five days in Kandy before Angelo Mathews tosses the coin next week.Weve come over here a little bit earlier than we normally would, we think thats a helpful thing in future, we havent done that in the past, Lehmann said. So to come a little bit earlier here and go a bit earlier to India to get acclimatised for an extra few days and hopefully an extra game in most places.Having entered the final week of their preparation, all Lehmann is looking for now is the announcement of Sri Lankas tour squad, the better to plan individual opponents. I wouldnt mind the side at some stage, he said. Thats the challenge, I dont think anyone knows what squad theyve got. Once they name their squad well work through that. We know a bit about them. Theyll be a lot better side at home, and thats going to be a challenge for us, but end of the day we just worry about what were doing. Once we get their squad away we go.The only Australian player under any sort of fitness cloud is David Warner, in the latter stages of recovery from a broken thumb, but Lehmann gave no hint of thinking the vice-captain might be in any doubt to open the innings with Joe Burns: Were preparing for him to play.San Diego Padres Pro Shop . -- In one brief spurt, Brazil turned a close game into a rout and proved again it will be a strong World Cup favourite. Custom San Diego Padres Jerseys .com) - Richie Incognito has reportedly been admitted to a psychiatric care unit in Arizona. https://www.cheappadresjerseys.us/ . Aside from the trilogy main event title fight, there are a number of intriguing matchups in the heavyweight, welterweight and lightweight divisions. Fake Padres Jerseys . The showiest items on Calgarys lot were forwards Mike Cammalleri and Lee Stempniak. Both will be unrestricted free agents this summer. San Diego Padres Store .5 seconds to play in the game, Kevin Love never stopped believing that they would come out of there with a win.When youre typing the name Alex Rodriguez or A-Rod almost every day, it gets you to thinking about many things, including why there are so few nicknames in baseball anymore. There used to be a time when it seemed all the stars had a handle. There was Rocket Roger Clemens, Bill The Spaceman Lee, Randy Big Unit Johnson, and just Lefty for Steve Carlton to name just a few for pitchers. Then there were the stars and the baseball legends such as George Herman Babe Ruth, the Sultan of Swat, Stan the Man Musial, Hammerin Hank Aaron, the Kid Ken Griffey Jr. and that other Kid – late great Hall of Famer Gary Carter. You can come up with so many more yourselves. What surprised me, when I did a little digging, was the most popular nickname ever is Doc. Marlin Bressi did an article for Yahoo in 2011 detailing 81 different players with that nickname. I even managed to come up with a few more that werent on that list - Roy Doc Halladay, Ron Taylor known by all in these parts as Doc Taylor, because he actually is a practicing physician in Toronto. Another name I remembered from his brief stay with the Blue Jays was right hander Danny Darwin, who was known as Doctor Death, for not being afraid to throw high and tight on batters. And then there was the late Dock Ellis, who spelled his with the K. And the greatest Doc of them all was probably New York Mets star Dwight Gooden who short-circuited his outstanding pitching career by abusing drugs and alcohol. The Doc I really wanted to tell you about though, is Maurice Mike Doc Powers - a catcher who began his big league career in the late 1800s and played thru the early 1900s mainly for the Philadelphia As. I always thought the first and only baseball death, related to an on-field incident, involved shortstop Ray Chapman of the Cleveland Indians. On August 16 of 1920, Carl Mays - a hard-throwing, side-winding pitcher - hit Chapman in the head with a pitch. He collapsed and died in hospital 12 hours later. That incident led to the outlawing of the spit ball and a rule change whereby umpires would remove balls from games as soon as they became scuffed or scratched or anyway discoloured. I was surprised to find out Chapman may not have been the first to die because of something that happened in a Major League game. On April 12 of 1909, the Philadelphia As were playing their season opener at Shibe Park.dddddddddddd It was quite a sight - the first stadium ever built entirely of concrete and steel, a state-of-the-art facility for its time. Mike Doc Powers was in the twilight of his career in 1909 at age 38. He was also a licenced, practicing physician. In the later years of his career Doc Powers was known as the Personal catcher of Future Hall of Famer Eddie Plank. Powers was also considered to be the unofficial pitching coach of the As and the right hand man to their legendary skipper Connie Mack.At some point early in this Opening Day game against the Red Sox, Powers made a Herculean effort to catch a foul pop and crashed hard into a wall. By the seventh inning he was doubled over in pain in the dugout. Doc Powers insisted, he should finish the game, which ended as an 8-1 victory for Philadelphia. After the game, Powers was taken to hospital where he was diagnosed with gastritis and or Peritonitis. Two days later he was operated on for a twisted/strangulated intestine. A surgeon removed a section of the intestine. Unfortunately, gangrene had begun to set in and after two more operations Doc Powers died on April 26 of 1909. Powers, over the last two weeks of his life, was reluctant to blame his condition on baseball. He actually thought he became ill from eating a spoiled cheese sandwich during the game. Author Brian McKenna, who deeply researched this story, mentioned it could have been a pre-existing condition that just happened to surface on that day. Doc Powers funeral was on April 29 and the entire As and Washington Senators teams were on hand, along with players from four other teams. So popular was Powers that thousands of mourners had to be turned away. Two years later on July 1 of 1910, the As organized what might have been the very first benefit game. Eight thousand dollars was raised for Doc Powers children. I found another fascinating Doc as well. Doc Cramer played in the majors for 20 seasons up until 1948 and helped the Detroit Tigers win the 1945 World Series over the Chicago Cubs - the last time the Cubbies made it to the Fall Classic. Cramer finished with a .296 batting average and 2,705 hits. Thats the most hits for any player before 1975 who didnt wind up in the Hall of Fame. ' ' '