Englands baptism in Rajkot ended in curious triumph, mid-over, and with the visitors if not ascendant then floating happily above expectations. Alastair Cook glowed, a 30th Test century in the books. We proved to everyone else we can play… he said. He called Ben Stokes golden and reckoned Haseeb Hameed was pushing me close to retirement.Was all of this good humour some form of survivor high? Or perhaps he was demob happy, having set in motion the idea that he will, in the not so distant future, pass on the captaincy and devote himself even more ascetically to batting.Someone somewhere will one day write a thesis on Cooks public pronouncements, comparing them to actual events on planet Earth. Until that day, all we can assume is that the captain was about as pleased as hes ever been with a drawn Test match.England, like most of the teams hovering around the top of the rankings, are a decent side. They have the potential to be better than that. Their work ethic is one thing about them that cannot be questioned, and perhaps its that sense of effort that felt most impugned by the many predictions after their defeat in the Dhaka Test that they may lose 5-0 in India.That particular catastrophe has been averted, but theres a wider pattern in evidence this year that runs contrary to the trend of teams having been stronger at home this decade than in any other over the last half-century or so. In 2016, England have won in South Africa, and been part of a drawn series at home to Pakistan. India won in the West Indies, Australia won in New Zealand, South Africa have swatted aside Australia in Australia. England have drawn in Bangladesh. The hostility of overseas conditions was once a given. Cricketers travelled less often: England, for example, may go to Australia, India, Pakistan, West Indies and so on in rotation. A fine Test player might tour each country twice in a career. It is a long way removed from the current high-volume, multi-format, multi-franchise life, in which a player can appear in India, Australia, England and West Indies in a single year as a matter of course. The opposition are less foreign too. Kevin Pietersen was the first England player to speak of the benefits of the early years in the IPL, the great exchange of information and knowledge that took place between new team-mates, and the way that franchise cricket broke down international boundaries. The nature of reputation changed. It was hard to hate a guy youd spent two months in harness with. There is a new familiarity to it all.Coaching has changed. England, after a spell with Mushtaq Ahmed, are being advised by Saqlain Mushtaq. Their most recent head coaches have included two Zimbabweans and an Australian. Knowledge flows across borders in a different way. Technology means any batsman or bowler can be dissected frame by frame, match by match. A lot of the mystery of touring has been taken away. Five-star hotel rooms are the same wherever you are.For England, the weather - specifically the heat - has been an enemy too. Yet we have never known more about how much the England captain sweats than we do now. Every possible disadvantage is minimised in advance.Conditions too have homogenised. Australia, once the home of the much-feared WACA, now has drop-ins at many grounds. West Indies have lost the sheen of Sabina Park in favour of new stadiums constructed with outside dollars. Asia still has its turners, but Englands captain has played often and well enough to have compiled nine Test centuries there. It is all more familiar.The disparities now are in finance and political clout. The best teams are often the richest, either as countries or as individual players. Test crickets inequalities are many, but they are no longer all about geography. A tour that goes wrong early seems to stretch into infinity, and teams will always boom and bust in cycles (just ask Steve Smith). A long Test tour is the toughest undertaking in cricket, but like so much else in 2016, it all feels far less certain than it once did. 03:16:38 GMT, November 17, 2016: The article originally said there have only been two comprehensive home series victories this year. That sentence has since been deleted Air Max 95 Mens Black . The Montreal Canadiens announced on Friday that the veteran forward will return to the teams line-up on Saturday night when the Habs visit the Nashville Predators. Cheap Air Max 95 Wholesale . The Cleveland Indians, Tampa Bay Rays, and Texas Rangers all won on Sunday meaning the Rangers will host the Rays in a play-in game on Monday. http://www.airmax95shoesforsale.com/ . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists. Cheap Air Max 95 Womens . The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer. Cheap Air Max 95 For Sale . -- For the first time in two months, an opponent was standing up to Alabama. NAGANO, Japan -- When hes not chanting and living the austere life of a Buddhist priest, Kazuki Yazawa contemplates Olympic gold.The 27-year-old Yazawa will represent Japan in canoe slalom at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics where he hopes to use his mental toughness and skill to bring home a medal.Yazawa wakes up before dawn every day -- not to train -- but to pray as a novice priest.With a shaved head and donning a long black robe, he tags along behind senior priests at the ancient Zenkoji Daikanjin Temple in Nagano prefecture, still learning his chants and getting used to long hours of sitting on the floor.But once the clock strikes 3 p.m. and his duties are done, he changes into a polo shirt and shorts and drives his white van to the nearby Saigawa River to practice for the big stage of Rio.Though a lifelong canoeist, Yazawas second calling as priest came shortly after competing in the London Olympics in 2012.He placed ninth in the mens K-1 kayak slalom -- a record for a Japanese canoeist -- but was strained under the pressures of finding sponsors.Thats was when he felt the need to find a stable job, and was inspired by his mentor and a fellow priest who also serves as the Nagano canoe association chairman, Kenei Koyama.In 2013, Yazawa decided to retreat from the front-lines of foreign competition and entered into priesthood.I never had the intention of balancing the two Yazawa said. When I starrted as a Buddhist priest, I had decided that my main job would be as a priest and that my life as a canoeist would be done in my spare time.ddddddddddddn unexpected turn of events happened when Yazawa won the Japanese canoe slalom national tournament in 2015, propelling him to the top among Japanese contenders to compete in the Summer Games in Rio.Now, Yazawa practices for about an hour and half, six days a week, followed by either a runs or a gym session.His practice time on an average day is less than half of what he had done for the London Olympics, but that has not deterred Yazawa from reaching for gold.I hope to give my best performance that I can on the grand stage of the Olympics, and come back to Japan with a good feeling Yazawa said.His elders, meanwhile, are giving him all the support they can while not putting too much pressure on him.If you can win, nothing would surpass that, Kansho Kayaki, Deputy Chief Priest at the temple, told Yazawa. Regardless of the results, we hope you will stay healthy, avoid injuries, and complete the games.Yazawa will be competing at his third Olympics in Rio, following Beijing and London. Win or lose, he is taking a philosophical approach.This time, I think Im more at ease, Yazawa said. I think Ill be able to enjoy the Games. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '