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Englands selectors seemingly had two paths they could follow in filling the vacancy in the batting order for the first Test against Pakistan. They could have gone the x-factor route - throw convention out the window and recall Jos Buttler based on his limited-overs form - or reward heavy scoring in the County Championship.In the end they have done neither. Instead, they have recalled Gary Ballance who is now set to return to Test cricket for the first time since last years Ashes but in the middle order rather than at No. 3.Timing certainly appears to be everything. This week Ballance made 132 against a Middlesex attack that - it turns out - included two members of the Test squad, Steven Finn and Toby Roland-Jones, which followed 78 against Durham the match before. Scott Borthwick, heavily tipped a few weeks ago, made his third single-figure score in his last three Championship innings.Still, Borthwick has 585 runs at 58.50 with three hundreds this season and Ballance 471 runs at 33.64. Ballance was the spare batsman in South Africa, but he was not deemed ready for a recall against Sri Lanka earlier this season, instead James Vince filling the middle-order spot created by James Taylors retirement.Selection, though, is more than about the numbers on a page. What he does have is that hard edge, Alastair Cook said. Gary is mentally strong, added national selector James Whitaker. That cannot be doubted. On debut he stood up to Mitchell Johnsons pace at the SCG and in his next Test, against Sri Lanka at Lords, reached his maiden century with a six in the final over of the day.Blooding an uncapped batsman against Pakistans attack would have brought its own risks; this was the conundrum England had left themselves after the gamble to stick with Nick Compton - while it was not without reason - backfired as he limped through the Sri Lanka series. Ballance knows the Test game and should not be overawed by the occasion; a test of technique more so than temperament.And it was not as though the runs had completely dried up when he was left out after the second Test against Australia last summer. The match before, he made a vital 61 on the opening day in Cardiff, in a potentially series-defining partnership, to help England recover from their early wobble and set up what would be a match-winning total.Yet nagging doubts remain, particularly because of the make-up of Pakistans attack. It was the full length and late movement of New Zealands Trent Boult which began Ballances problems - removing him three times in four innings - and over the next few weeks he will face Mohammad Amir and, most likely, Wahab Riaz which will provide him with a similar challenge.The selectors could have reinvented the thinking of Test selection by recalling Buttler without any first-class cricket since October but ultimately have stuck with convention and decided he needs some red-ball matches. Even with this squad there are rumblings about the value of County Championship runs with the leading scorers around the country ignored, so skipping the system completely would have raised further questions. The narrative now divides with the spotlight remaining on Jonny Bairstows glovework while Buttler returns to domestic cricket for Lancashire.Trevor Bayliss has got his way over the No. 3 spot with Joe Root being elevated. He would want to do it, Bayliss said a few days ago. Alastair Cook revealed he had a few beers with Root after the Sri Lanka series and that he was keen to make the move. There is no reason why Root, one of the most adaptable batsmen in the world, should not be able to make a success of first drop. It makes more sense for him to be there than Vince, who had a lean series against Sri Lanka and could soon be the under-pressure batsman in the side.But there remains a sense of uncertainty around the Test top order. In the last four series there have been significant changes; Ballance dropped in the Ashes, Bairstow for Buttler in the UAE, Compton and Taylor in for South Africa, Vince called up against Sri Lanka and now back to Ballance. England will hope that by the end of this series there is a bit more clarity, although Amir and Yasir Shah may have something to say about that.Black Friday Shoes China . Team physician Dr. Steve Traina performed the surgery Friday. Robinson was injured in a spill underneath the Nuggets basket during the first quarter of Wednesday nights loss to the Charlotte Bobcats. Black Friday Shoes Free Shipping . 10 Texas Rangers jersey for one last time. Young formally announced his retirement Friday after returning to Rangers Ballpark, his baseball home for all but the last of his 13 major league seasons. https://www.shoesblackfriday.com/ .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. Black Friday Shoes Sale . The All-Pro lineman got the leg bent under him while trying to make a tackle during the first half of a 22-20 overtime loss at Miami on Thursday night. The medical staff initially thought hed torn the ligament, and the test a day later in Cincinnati confirmed it. Black Friday Shoes Store . -- Nathan Pancel scored twice as the Sudbury Wolves defeated the North Bay Battalion 4-2 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action.UNCASVILLE, Conn. -- Jasmine Thomas scored 21 points and the Connecticut Sun rallied from an 11-point deficit in the second half to beat the Indiana Fever 89-87 on Tuesday night.The Fever (16-16) fell one game back of Chicago for the fourth seed in the playoffs, which includes a first-round bye in the postseason.It was a back-and-forth first half before the Fever closed with the final five points, making it 47-41 at the break. The advantage grew to 11 in the third quarter before Connecticut (12-20) rallied.The game was tied at 80 with just over 2 minutes left before Thomas hit a 3-pointter from the wing.dddddddddddd Jonquel Jones three-point play with 1:07 left made it 87-82.The Fever had a chance to tie it, but Shenise Johnsons 3-pointer from the corner bounced off the rim with 17.9 seconds left. Thomas hit two free throws to seal the win.Catchings, who will retire at the end of the season, moved within two rebounds of Lisa Leslies career record of 3,007. The Sun presented a check to Catchings before the game for $5,024 for her foundation. ' ' '