Similarities between Moeen Ali and Croatian music teacher Frane Selak may not, at first glance, appear obvious.But Selak has been dubbed both the worlds luckiest and unluckiest man. His first brush with death came when he was involved in a train crash that resulted in the carriage he was travelling in ploughing into an icy lake. His next came when he was sucked out of a plummeting plane but landed relatively safety in a haystack.If that wasnt enough, three years later, the bus he was in skidded off the road and into a river, while he has also been hit by a bus, seen his car catch fire twice and been thrown free from another car crash - he wasnt wearing a seatbelt - and found himself in a tree as his vehicle fell down a mountain side.In later years, however, he won more than $1m in a lottery. Which presumably has helped compensate for the difficulty he has trying to find travel companions.While Moeens close calls on day one of this series were, by comparison with Selak, relatively mundane they were, by cricketing standards, extraordinary.Three times in six Shakib Al Hasan deliveries, Moeen was given out leg before - each time by umpire Kumar Dharmasena - only to win a reprieve on each occasion thanks to DRS. No player has been reprieved so often in a Test innings. Moeen also survived two further reviews - both called for by Bangladesh after the umpires had declined leg before appeals - and an appeal when he had scored one which, had Bangladesh reviewed, would have been out.Whether that makes Moeen lucky or unlucky is debatable. It was noticeable that conversation between him and Dharmasena - the man whose advice revolutionised his bowling - evaporated in the afternoon session and Moeen could have been forgiven a smile when he saw Dharmasena call for a fresh pair of glasses (presumably sunglasses) midway through the afternoon session.We are normally pretty tight, Moeen said afterwards. But we didnt speak for a session. It was a tough pitch to umpire, but what can I say? The guy gave me out three times!Either way, Moeen responded with a vital innings. Coming to the crease with England reeling at 21 for 3 - their lowest score at the loss of their third wicket in the first innings of a Test in Asia - he recorded his highest score in the top six in Test cricket (he has batted in the top six 18 times and at No. 7, 8 and 9 32 times combined) to give England a foothold in this match. They may even have their noses in front. At one stage, they were talking of 250 as a good score. While the pitch will not necessarily deteriorate markedly, it is most unlikely to become easier to bat upon. The prospect of batting last is daunting for Bangladesh.It was, at times, a desperate struggle for England. On an unusually dry pitch - some in the England dressing room rate it the driest surface they have ever seen for the start of a Test - the ball spun sharply from the start and, in stifling heat and humidity, retaining concentration was tough and ball beat bat often.Ben Duckett looked talented but loose, Alastair Cook looked rusty and Gary Ballance was somewhat unfortunate to be adjudged leg before to a ball that just brushed the pad before meeting the middle of the bat. It is a dismissal that would have been unthinkable before the days of DRS.But Moeen, adopting the logic that served him well in the English summer, imagined he was batting at No. 3 for Worcestershire and approached the innings not as a bowling all-rounder but a specialist batsman whose side required him to fight through the tricky periods and provide what may turn out to be a match-defining platform. He did not allow the reviews to disturb his concentration, he did not lose patience when runs dried up and he did not miss out when the rare poor ball was delivered.We knew Moeen could score pretty runs. We knew he could come in down the order, time the ball sweetly and provide important contributions. But here he was asked to do more than that. He was promoted to No. 5 - one of five left-handers in the top six - and required to battle like a top-order player; not waft like a bonus batsman.The result may have been, as Moeen described them, dirty runs but from Englands perspective they were wonderfully dirty. It was not his most memorable or pleasing innings for England, but it was one of his most mature. It took a beautiful delivery, which drifted in to draw the stroke and spun to take the edge, to end it.It was very tough, he said. The hardest 60 Ive ever made. They bowled well; very accurately. I kept missing the ball and it kept hitting my pad. I couldnt figure out why. It was a massive mental challenge - especially with the reviews - but it was a good mental challenge.That positive mindset is obvious in every aspect of Moeens approach to this tour. While some players have declined to tour on security grounds, Moeen has brought his wife (who is from Bangladesh and who, he met here on tour a few years ago) and son and is relishing every aspect of the trip.He was not alone here. Not only did Joe Root score a polished 40 - easily the most fluent batting of the day - but he insisted Moeen utilise DRS on the second and third occasions he was adjudged to have been out leg before. While Moeen was confident he had some bat on the first such appeal - a view that was eventually vindicated by replays - he admitted he may not have called for a review on either of the other two occasions. Root saved me, he said.Later Jonny Bairstow and Chris Woakes also provided valuable runs. Bairstow, who might consider himself unfortunate to be moved down the order, contributed his fourth half-century in successive Test innings and his fifth in six. He fell one short of equalling Andy Flowers record for the most runs in a calendar year by a Test keeper but, with a maximum of 13 more innings to come this year, he will surely break that record by a huge margin. He has, at present, played only one innings more than Flower.It was another example of Englands strength in depth rescuing them. Here, for the first time since 1992, they have fielded a Test XI in which every man has scored a first-class century.It will be interesting to see how England respond tactically to what they witnessed on day one. Moeen reasoned that the spin was most dangerous with the new ball as some deliveries skidded on off the shiny surface and some gripped and turned. The ball continued to spin with the older ball, but just a little more predictably.So, will England take the same approach? Or will they conclude that would negate their strength in three seamers? Bangladesh bowled only 17 overs of seam on day one, conceding 4.35 runs per over from them and failing to take a wicket. The 75 overs of spin - yes, we had 92 overs in the day - brought seven wickets at a cost of just 2.21 runs per over despite the utilisation of two or three part-time bowlers.Bangladesh were not without fault, though. For a start, they dropped Bairstow at slip on 13 but, just as damaging was the introduction of Kamrul Islam Rabbi who conceded 5.12 runs per over and released the pressure almost every time he came into the attack. After one early over, he was reintroduced into the attack when England were 35 for 3 and Moeen was on 1. He conceded 10 in his first over back and 22 from the four-over spell.So England - and Moeen in particular - had some fortune. But they retained their composure and took advantage. It was a far from perfect day, but it could have been much, much worse. Frane Selak would understand. Cheap Custom Avalanche Jersey . 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MINNEAPOLIS -- The lore of the Minnesota Vikings, with four losses in four Super Bowl appearances and five NFC championship game defeats since then, is marked by a long list of major letdowns.The latest jarring blow came just before the beginning of this long-anticipated regular season, when quarterback Teddy Bridgewaters left knee collapsed during a routine non-contact drill. The injury caused enough damage to keep him out for the rest of the year and put his 2017 season in question, too.The massive injury to Minnesotas popular leader was a devastating, emotional setback. Bridgewaters absence hasnt deterred the Vikings from thinking big, though. From coach Mike Zimmers inherent defiance to the bold trade made for Sam Bradford, the Vikings havent given up on their Super Bowl goal. Their window to win it all for the first time in franchise history is still open, albeit not as wide as a week ago.Were not going to stick our heads in the sand. Were going to figure out a way, Zimmer said. Everybody can count us out if they want, but I think thatd be the wrong thing to do.Zimmer, inspired by the lessons learned from his late father, a long-time high school coach, and mentored by former boss Bill Parcells, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, has always thrived with an underdog mindset.He didnt get his chance to be an NFL head coach until age 57. As the Vikings stacked up victories on the way to the NFC North title last year, Zimmer frequently mentioned to the team and to the media the external skepticism surrounding their success, even if some of that was simply made up.So when asked after Bridgewater went down how the leadership void will be filled, Zimmer zoomed right past the accomplished veterans on the roster and wholly embraced the responsibility as his own.Im going to lead them, Zimmer said. Im going to make sure that theyre paying attention, doing things right. Anytime you have a tragedy or whatever you want to call it, theyre going to be looking to somebody for strength and wisdom and all these other things. Part of my job is, and Ive already started to do it, to talk to them about the things that I believe we have to do and how we need to move forward. Thats why they hired me.The pressure will be on Zimmer, as well as on running back Adrian Peterson and a deep, solid defense.Its very unfortunate to have the injjury happen, Peterson said.dddddddddddd It takes a team to win a championship, so were still chasing the same thing.Here are some key angles to know about the season for the Vikings:REPLACEMENT PLAN: The Vikings gave up a 2017 first-round draft pick, plus another selection in 2018 that could reach as high as the second round based on conditions, to get Bradford from Philadelphia. Clearly, the plan will be to start the 2010 first overall draft pick once hes up to speed with the offense. Shaun Hill, who backed up Bridgewater last year and has begun his 15th season in the league, is more likely to lead the huddle Sunday at Tennessee.THE FRONT FIVE: Some reasons the Vikings were so eager to watch Bridgewater play, and so confident in his continued development, were enhancements to an offensive line that leaked a lot in his first two years. Free agents Alex Boone and Andre Smith have taken over at left guard and right tackle. Joe Berger, who excelled while filling in for John Sullivan at center last season while the six-year starter recovered from a back injury, was good enough that Sullivan recently was let go. Brandon Fusco has returned to his original spot at right guard, and right tackle Matt Kalil has entered the final season of his contract.GROUND GAME: After leading the league in rushing in 2015 at age 30, Peterson also ought to benefit from better blocking in front of him. The Vikings have been planning to make versatile running back Jerick McKinnon more of an integral part of the offense, too.THE FRONT FOUR: The backbone of the team is a defensive line thats as stacked and deep as ever. The Vikings tied for seventh last year with 43 sacks, and theres the potential to land higher. Defensive end Everson Griffen, who posted 22+ sacks over the last two seasons, is poised for a big year.RAISING THE ROOF: After a couple of preseason tuneups, the Vikings will formally open U.S. Bank Stadium on Sept. 18 when they host the rival Green Bay Packers. The $1.1 billion venue was built on the same site as the old Metrodome.---Online:AP NFL website: http://www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL coverage on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Dave Campbell on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/DaveCampbellAP ' ' '