side seam on the ball where they can go

For Sprint Cup drivers who are contenders to make NASCARs version of the postseason, there are many ways the race can go right or wrong on Sunday at Watkins Glen.The only safe prediction -- whether by team owners, crew chiefs, drivers or journalists -- is that stuff happens at the 2.45-mile road course with a majority of right hand corners instead of left hand turns. Unusual stuff.When it comes to the Chase standings, there are 10 drivers in the running for the remaining five places currently available for getting into the Chase on points. Austin Dillon, Ryan Newman, Chase Elliott, Jamie McMurray and Kyle Larson are currently above the cut line. Kasey Kahne, Trevor Bayne, Ryan Blaney, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. and A.J. Allmendinger are within shouting distance in the points standings.Chris Buescher, the upset winner at the Pocono Raceway on Monday, is six points out of the Top 30. If he can advance one position in the points and stay in the Top 30, his surprise victory will put him into the Chase and take away one spot for those who are vying to get in on points.What kind of road racer is Buescher? His first Xfinity Series victory came at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in 2014.For those who cant afford a bad day at the track when it comes to making the Chase, here are the main ways results can be juggled dramatically on the 22nd stop in the 26-race regular season:1. Pit strategy -- When Tony Stewart won at the Sonoma Raceway in June, an early pit stop and fortuitous caution put him into the lead. From there he held on, sometimes precariously, for a victory despite getting passed briefly due to worn tires by Denny Hamlin on the last lap. It was an upset because Stewart was out of the running until he was forced to pit early by ill handling. Teams willing to gamble on getting a victory or high finish can choose to try their luck at the Glen and come in early for tires and fuel on the last round of stops, hoping for a quick caution and an outcome similar to Stewart at Sonoma.2. Fuel mileage -- This is an alternate route when it comes to pit strategy. Fuel strategies can be dictated by cautions, which can present the chance for a backmarker to advance to the front. But if a fuel strategy falls short, it can lead to a plunge in the points with either a slow final lap or an incomplete last lap.Last year, Joey Logano led only one lap to win as he passed the slowing Chevy of Kevin Harvick, which was out of fuel, in the final corner. Kyle Busch also slipped by to take second. This may have shaken up only the top three positions, but its an example of how risk taking on fuel strategy comes into play at Watkins Glen.3. New race winner -- A driver in the running for a points position such as Allmendinger can win the race and reduce the number of spots available in the 16-driver field to those trying to make the Chase on points. Allmendinger came into the Sprint Cup from the CART series, where he regularly won on road and street circuits. He took the victory at the Glen in 2014 and has been a contender on road courses ever since.Are there any other potential candidates to win now that Down Under road racer Marcos Ambrose has returned to his native Tasmania after winning in 2011 and 2012? Boris Said, a road racer who has regularly driven Sprint Cup events at the Glen, is entered by GO FAS Racing. Where Front Row Motorsports and Buescher are affiliated with Roush Fenway Racing, GO FAS is a long, long shot despite the prowess of Said.4. Mechanical failure -- Drivers shift more often at the Glen than on ovals. This can put the gearboxes themselves at risk and valve trains, which can be damaged due to missing a shift and over-revving the engine. Since the vast majority of drivers finish on the lead lap at the Glen, an early exit or lost lap due to a sour transmission or engine can really hurt in the points.Brad Keselowskis crash during a test at the New York track traced to an improperly installed brake line was a reminder that car prep is crucial as always. Since teams only race on road circuits twice a year, mistakes in preparation, which are increasingly rare in the Sprint Cup, can happen.5. Crew chief strategy -- the wrong call or calls by a crew chief on when to pit can leave a driver mired in traffic at the tail end of the field. When Tony Eury, Jr. had to step down as the crew chief for his cousin Dale Earnhardt, Jr., at Hendrick Motorsports in 2009, the writing was on the wall after he badly botched the strategy at the Glen.6. Driver error -- With so much shifting and turns, plus the precarious braking zone for the bus stop chicane on the back straight, its relatively easy for drivers to get off course. On ovals, they merely get off line with slight errors. A few inches can make a world of difference at the Glen. Once in the grass, its easy for a driver to bust his, well, damage the car enough to lose a lap. Thats the kiss of points death at the Glen.7. The weather -- While it would be highly unlikely for two races in a row to be halted by fog, which brought Buescher his victory at Pocono, the Glen is alternately sunny, cloudy, clear, misty and rainy during the late summer. A weather interruption could once again play havoc in the final results like at Pocono.Throw into this mix of possible problems the fact that expert road racers Stewart and Jeff Gordon, subbing for the injured Earnhardt, Jr., are in theory running their last race at the Glen. Stewart is a lock for the Chase and Gordon as a super sub is ineligible due to his distant points position. Neither driver has anything to lose by gambling for a victory by racing aggressively. Its the same with their crew chiefs when it comes to an aggressive pit strategy.Whatever the weather, the forecast for Watkins Glen on Sunday is mixed conditions as teams and drivers continue to jockey for a slot in the Chase. Dillon Maples Cubs Jersey . Already owning gold from competition in Vancouver in 2010, Loch posted a combined four-run time of 3:27.526. That included a track-record third run of 51. Victor Caratini Cubs Jersey .C. -- Charlotte Bobcats coach Steve Clifford said after all of these years in the NBA hes still amazed at some of the things LeBron James does. https://www.cheapcubs.com/1990t-victor-caratini-jersey-cubs.html . The Dane followed up his first European Tour title last weekend with eight birdies and just a single dropped shot on Thursday for a one-stroke advantage over South Africas Allan Versfeld and Portugals Ricardo Santos. Ron Cey Cubs Jersey . -- Aldon Smith believes he is on the path to being sober for good. Rick Sutcliffe Jersey . The FA rejected Wilsheres appeal that the length of his punishment was "clearly excessive" and said Thursday his suspension begins with immediate effect. He will miss league matches against Chelsea on Monday and West Ham on Dec. Australias captain Steven Smith has conceded a radical shift in Test selection may be required in order to change the national sides increasingly grim record in Asia, after he presided over a series-ending thrashing at the hands of Sri Lanka in Galle. It was Australias eighth consecutive loss in the region, following series clean sweeps by India and Pakistan in 2013 and 2014.The top six chosen for Pallekele and Galle was the same as that used through last summer in Australia and New Zealand, but Smith admitted it may now be time to think in terms of the players best-equipped to deal with spin bowling on helpful pitches, rather than the diet of pace on which most of his batting colleagues have been raised. Joe Burns and Usman Khawaja in particular have looked out of their depth despite strong returns last season, each innings looking more fraught than the last.Touring players will have the option of returning to Galle for training on what should have been the fourth day of the Test. The centre pitch on which the batsmen were so confused has been left unwatered in order to be used for additional practice. However Smith agreed that the composition of the team needed to be examined in view of the results collected here.Yeah it certainly needs to be looked at, Smith said following the 229-run defeat that handed Sri Lanka the Warne-Muralitharan Trophy for the first time since it was struck. If there are guys that can play spin well in these conditions then its certainly got to be a chance. Its been too long now - I think its been 15 or 16 [10] games since weve won a game in the subcontinent, so whatever were doing its not working. So yeah there might be a need for some changes.Australia have chosen batsmen for subcontinent conditions in the past, the current coach and selector Darren Lehmann among them. He made his debut in India in 1998 then later played a useful role in series wins in Pakistan and India, while often being left out at home as others were thought to be more proficient against pace. Smith was himself a batsman picked for the conditions expected in India three years ago, a tour for which the selectors were believed to have also considered David Hussey before hesitating.The Australia A captain Peter Handscomb has been suggested as a player with the potential to perform more ably against spin than others, while the selection of specialist opening batsmen like Burns may also come into question. Shaun Marsh and Moises Henriques are the reserve batsmen on tour, and both should come into contention for the third Test in Colombo next week.The guys are a bit down at the moment and fair enough too, its been a tough series so far, we have been outplayed in both Test matches, the moods not great at the moment. We are a bit disappointed, but weve still got plenty to play for in Colombo, Smith said. We have got to try and prove too ourselves and the public that we can play in these conditions.ddddddddddddI thought the first innings was very disappointing, I thought today we were a little bit more proactive, we saw some sweep shots, some reverse sweeps, the guys using their feet and to get around 180 I thought probably around 200 in the last innings of this game or every innings of this match was probably around par. So we saw a little bit of proactive thinking and innovative thinking today to find a way, we just havent been able to do it for long periods of time though.They have got some quality bowlers in their team that get the ball to spin and then skid sharply as well. I guess when the ball does spin sharply it sort of plays on your mind that you might just play outside of one. We havent been good enough with it and we have to find ways to just cover that ball that doesnt spin. The majority of the time if it spins it spins too far, we have to forget about the ball before essentially and if it comes and does spin, hopefully it spins past the stumps and the outside edge.Smith also addressed the disparity in the performances of Australias spinners Nathan Lyon and Jon Holland against their Sri Lankan counterparts Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera and Lakshan Sandakan. They didnt get many wickets did they? Smith said of Lyon and Holland. We need to find ways to bowl differently to how we bowl our spin in Australia as well. You look at the Sri Lankan spinners, any of the subcontinent spinners, they bowl that side seam on the ball where they can go up and down with their speeds and trajectory. The ball reacts differently. One ball goes straight on and speeds up off the wicket, one ball spins and you dont know which one is which.I dont think the bowlers actually know which one is which either. In Australia traditionally, we get taught to get over the top of the ball and in Australia I think you need to get that shape to try and do the batsman in drift and shape in the air. Whereas, I think its the exact opposite playing in the subcontinent. The ones with the side seam are extremely hard to face and our spin bowlers need to continue working on that. Its bowling a completely different way to the way we bowl in Australia.I thought all of the fast bowlers did a pretty good job for us in this game, but to be fair, it shouldnt be them taking the wickets. It should be our spinners that are getting the job done. For Jon Holland in his first Test, he was obviously a little bit nervous and you can excuse that a little bit. The spinners have to find a way to get wickets and keep the runs dry on these surfaces. Weve gone at over four an over for both Test matches, so weve got to find a way for the spinners to get wickets in these conditions. ' ' '