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It wasnt just that England gave India a scare on the final day. It was that, after the wretched final session in Dhaka, their batsmen proved to themselves they could succeed in these conditions and their spinners lost nothing in comparison to their Indian counterparts. Even their seamers, on a surface offering them little, could take pride in the manner they hurried and harried the Indian batsmen.They proved to India and, perhaps more importantly, to themselves, that they could challenge in this series.No-one was talking of us having a chance in this series, Alastair Cook said afterwards. But the way we played showed were in there. Its been a good five days and weve proved to everyone else that we can play.Perhaps we should have known that already. After all, England had won nine (and lost only two) of the last 13 Tests between these sides.But the defeat in Dhaka - and the manner of that defeat - evoked memories of Englands long-term struggles against spin. And, given Indias daunting home record of late, the makeshift appearance of Englands top-order and the relative lack of experience of their spinners, there were few people predicting success for them.They probably exceeded expectations on the final day. Having taken 160 overs to bowl India out in the first innings, it seemed attempting to do so in 50 overs in the second was a gesture more than a serious proposition.But when the sixth wicket fell with 10 overs left, it seemed real enough. And it wont have gone unnoticed by England that, under pressure, a couple of India batsmen made some odd choices. Ravi Ashwin drive to cover, W Saha seemed determined to hit his way out of trouble and Gautam Gambhir looked intimidated by the pace of Chris Woakes (who hardly bowled a poor ball in the match) on a slow wicket. Virat Kohli looked wonderfully solid, but elsewhere several chinks in the armour became apparent. And, as Arnold Schwarzenegger almost put it: if it bleeds, England can kill it.Criticism of Cooks declaration seems harsh. While it is true we may look back on the final afternoon in Rajkot as Englands best chance of winning a Test on this tour, it was never realistic to expect Cook to risk wasting four-and-a-half days of hard work by giving India an opportunity in the opening match of a series. Especially as this India side contains, in Kohli, one of the great chasers in the history of limited-overs cricket. The eventual target was 310 in a minimum of 49 overs but, with England scoring 34 in the final five completed overs of their innings, even a slightly earlier declaration might have given India a chance. Cook says he never considered keeping India in the field all day.We just didnt want to give India a sniff, he said. Maybe a braver person would have set them 240 but I thought it was a fair declaration, especially in the first game of the series. We had just been 180 without loss on that wicket. It wasnt a minefield.There was that outside chance, that 20-to-1 chance that we could win and youve got to take that opportunity to do that.Any analysis of the England performance has to acknowledge the substantial advantage they had in this match. Winning the toss was crucial and, had Indias fielders held on to their first-innings chances, the match might have taken a different direction. But it also has to acknowledge history. Before this game, no visiting batsmen had made a century in India since 2013. For four to now have done so reflects well on an England batting line-up that, at last, might be coming together. The continued development of Ben Stokes, who has gone from looking hapless against spin to looking one of Englands best players of it, is particularly obvious but we may well look back on the Rajkot Test of 2016 as the debut of a special talent in Haseeb Hameed.Hameed missed out on a debut century - selflessly trying to up the pace in an attempt to set-up the declaration - but he still registered the highest score by a teenager in Englands Test history. It would be a major surprise if he was not one of Englands openers in the Ashes in 12 months time. It has been a long, long time since they have been able to look that far ahead.The performance of Englands spinners was almost as encouraging. After struggling in Bangladesh, they responded with a much-improved display that included the best performance of Adil Rashids Test career to date. Moeen Ali, who was named man of the match, conceded fewer runs per over than Ashwin and also took as many wickets in fewer overs, while Zafar Ansari had a better strike-rate than his left-arm counterpart Ravi Jadeja. The influence of Saqlain Mushtaq, who seems to have inspired more confidence in all of them, has been telling.Our three spinners came in for a lot of criticism after Bangladesh, Cook said. But they bowled a lot better. It has been great to have Saqlain Mushtaq here and he has made a massive difference for those guys. They bowled really well.Cook looked exhausted at the end. Despite admitting he had been struggling for form, he still managed to compile his 30th Test century - only 10 men have more now - but he accepted that his side had put a lot in for little tangible reward. For both sides, managing tired players is going to be an issue as the series progresses.Its been a hard five days, Cook said. A tough Test. Weve put everything on the line and played some really good cricket. Its disappointing not to get over the line, but it was a great Test and everyone can be proud of the way they played. If we hit the same standards as weve done there, well be okay. Its just about repeating it.Im feeling fairly jaded now and I think the lads. Its been bloody hard work, I can tell you that.With that in mind, England may refresh the side with the addition of James Anderson for the second Test starting on Thursday. While it remains more likely he will return for the third Test, it could be that he replaces a spinner - probably Ansari - if England decide the pitch will offer him anything. It seems more probable that the Visakhapatnam surface will encourage spinners.England know that tougher challenges lie ahead. They know the pitches will turn more and they know that they wont always win the toss. But this performance means they will face those challenges with confidence in their own games high and the knowledge that they are up against an opponent that can be beaten.There is still a bit of room for improvement. Had Cook held on to a relatively simple chance offered by Mohammed Shami in the first innings, England would have taken a first-innings lead of 77 and, had their over-rate been better on Friday, they would have had another four overs at the India batsmen in the second innings.But these are minor quibbles. This was an encouraging start.Nike Air Max 90 Sale .com) - The Chicago Blackhawks aim for their third three-game winning streak of the season when they host the struggling Edmonton Oilers in Sundays battle at the United Center. Nike Air Max 90 From China . Varlamov made 33 saves and Ryan OReilly had a goal and scored in the shootout as the Avalanche beat the New Jersey Devils 2-1 on Thursday night. https://www.cheapnikeairmax90china.us/ .S. -- Nikolaj Ehlers registered a hat trick for the third straight game and Jonathan Drouin had a goal and five assists as the Halifax Mooseheads hammered the host Cape Breton Screaming Eagles 10-1 on Tuesday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Wholesale Nike Air Max 90 .C. at the helm of the top team in the Eastern Conference. His tenure as the GM in Vancouver was all too brief. Though he led the Canucks to what was then a franchise record-shattering campaign in just his second season, Nonis was gone and replaced one year later. Cheap Nike Air Max 90 . -- Cam Newton pranced into the end zone, placed his hands over his chest and did his familiar Superman pose.PITTSBURGH -- Mike Tomlin isnt underestimating Ben Roethlisbergers healing powers.The Pittsburgh Steelers coach is keeping the door open for his franchise quarterback and his surgically repaired left knee to return on Sunday in Baltimore.Roethlisberger tore cartilage in the knee during the second quarter of a loss to Miami on Oct. 16 and underwent outpatient surgery the following day.He stood on the sideline in sweatpants while backup Landry Jones played capably in a 27-16 loss to New England and was able to practice a bit during Pittsburghs bye week and again on Monday.I think all the cards are on the table, Tomlin said on Tuesday.The main issues for Roethlisberger are swelling and pain tolerance, things that have hardly been a deterrent to Roethlisberger in the past.Tomlin called what he saw from Roethlisberger on Monday generally positive, but will wait to see how the knee responds during the week before making any sort of decision on Roethlisbergers availability.Im just looking at it day by day, deciding what opportunities were going to give him on a given day, like we did (Monday), what hes able to do with it and then waiting for the next day to see the ramifications or the result of that work, Tomlin said.The prognosis for other starters appears more promising. Defensive end Cam Heyward (hamstring) and right tackle Marcus Gilbert (ankle) have practiced regularly and appear to be on the verge of being in the lineup barring a setback.Heyward missed the first two games of his career after going down in a win over the New York Jets on Oct. 9. Pittsburghs run defense crumbled without him, giving up 222 yards on the ground against the Dolphins and 140 to the Patriots. Heywards absence was hardly the only issue, but having in back would certainly help.We have to do a better job of being where we need to be and when we are, do a better job of funcctionally tackling, Tomlin said.ddddddddddddSometimes, its just that sureness, that understanding of how what it is you do, fits in the bigger picture that will allow you to play with the energy and physicality thats required to do the job.The problems on defense arent just limited to the run.Pittsburgh has produced just eight sacks -- last in the league -- and eight turnovers so far, well off the pace the Steelers set last season on their way to the playoffs.Tomlin pointed to several instances when his defensive backs saw potential interceptions bounce off their hands and harmlessly to the turf. Veteran William Gay let one get away early against the Dolphins when the Steelers were still leading.If he brings it in, Pittsburgh has the ball in Miami territory with a chance to add to its advantage. Instead the Dolphins escaped and pretty soon were off to the races.Theres been a number of opportunities that havent been cashed in on, Tomlin said. There havent been enough opportunities because were not doing a good enough job of creating climate where those opportunities occur.Game notesTomlin praised tight end Ladarius Greens mental preparation as he works his way back off the physically unable to perform list. Green has yet to play this season because of health issues that began with offseason ankle surgery. The team has a 21-day window to determine whether to activate Green or not. ... WR Eli Rogers will be in the mix against the Ravens. Rogers dressed, but did not see the field against New England, though Tomlin said the decision not to play Rogers was not due to an off-the-field issue. Rogers has 13 receptions for 135 yards and a touchdown in four games.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '