India head coach Ravi Shastri has revealed why India have picked Ravindra Jadeja, rather than R Ashwin, as their lone spinner in the two Tests against West Indies. Shastri admitted it was difficult to leave a "world-class" bowler like Ashwin on the bench, but pointed to various attributes that gave Jadeja the edge.

Chiefly, he said India's team management had felt Jadeja's pace through the air would have made him difficult to face on a damp Antigua pitch in case India needed to bowl first.

"Jaddu's record is fabulous," Shastri said, speaking to the former England offspinner Graeme Swann, who is part of the Ten Sports commentary team. "You have to see what he brings to the table. He's arguably the best fielder in the world now. He's improved his batting like hell. And if you see these tracks, I don't think there will be much on offer for the spinner, so you would need control.

"The reason why we picked Jadeja in the first Test was, in case we fielded and the track was damp, with his pace he would have made life a little awkward for the batsmen. He could have been used even on day one in the first session of play.

"But it's tough - to keep a world-class guy like Ash out, and then there's Kuldeep [Yadav] in the wings. Never easy. For that matter, in the batting line-up, to keep someone like Rohit Sharma on the sidelines, especially on the back of five hundreds in the World Cup and some very good form that he's carrying, it's tough."

As it happened, West Indies chose to bowl first in Antigua. Jadeja played a key role with the bat, coming in at 189 for 6 in the first innings and scoring 58 to help haul India to a competitive total of 297. That innings continued a rich vein of batting form in Test cricket, where he has averaged 41.80, with a century and ten fifties, since the start of 2016.

Jadeja wasn't required to put in too much of a shift with the ball in Antigua, as the fast bowlers led the way in bowling India to a 318-run victory. The fast-bowling combination of Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami has been a vital part of India's recent successes, and Shastri said having bowlers capable of taking 20 wickets in any conditions narrowed the gap between home and away Tests.

"[India bowling coach] Bharat Arun has seen a lot of these guys from a very young age," Shastri said. "Our endeavour was to get a really good bowling attack in place that could take us 20 wickets anywhere. Once you have a good bowling attack that can take 20 wickets anywhere, then no game is an away game. Every game is a home game. It doesn't matter what the pitch is, you have the ammunition.

"These three fast bowlers complement each other beautifully. One's tall (Ishant), Bumrah has the most awkward action yet gets the ball to swing both ways, and Shami is someone who presents the seam better than [most]. The only other guy I know who presents the seam in that fashion is Jimmy Anderson. You've got variety there, plus you've got spin - you've got Kuldeep, Ash, Jadeja, and there are two or three more in the ranks, which is good."

MINNEAPOLIS -- Less than three weeks after sending a fifth-round pick to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for Kaare Vedvik, the Minnesota Vikings have cut the 25-year-old kicker/punter.

The Vikings also parted ways Saturday with former first-round draft pick Laquon Treadwell, who failed to carve out a role in Minnesota's offense in the three seasons after he was drafted 23rd overall in 2016.

After a preseason of uncertainty surrounding their specialists, the Vikings will go with Dan Bailey as their kicker, Matt Wile as the punter and rookie Austin Cutting at long-snapper. The hope, according to a source, is that the team will be able to sign Vedvik to the practice squad on Sunday if he clears waivers.

The Norwegian-born combo kicker was 12-of-13 on field goals during the last two preseasons in Baltimore before going 1-for-4 on such kicks with the Vikings. Upon arriving in Minnesota, Vikings coaches considered the idea of letting Vedvik handle both kicking and punting responsibilities, something he'd previously handled during his collegiate career at Marshall, though the difficulties in handling such a heavy workload -- especially for a rookie -- were noted.

Vedvik's struggles became more frequent during the final days of the preseason. In Minnesota's last practice before playing in Buffalo, Vedvik went 5-for-9 on field goals. Asked about what he's learned with handling kickers who struggle in the preseason, coach Mike Zimmer noted the role he needs to have in helping these players overcome hurdles.

"It's a good question," Zimmer said. "I guess the biggest thing is I've got to have more patience, probably."

Treadwell was coming off a 2018 campaign where he recorded his first touchdown as a pro, notching a career-high 302 receiving yards while leading the team in dropped passes. Minnesota opted not to pick up the receiver's fifth-year option, which would have cost the Vikings $10.162 million next season.

Instead, Minnesota incurs $2,506,360 in dead cap by releasing Treadwell prior to his fourth season, given the proration of his signing bonus ($1,356,360) and the guaranteed portion of his 2019 salary ($1.15 million).

According to a source with knowledge of the language in Treadwell's contract, there is an offset provision, which means if Treadwell is claimed off waivers, the guarantee owed by the Vikings will reduce by the amount the new team pays him.

The news of Treadwell's release doesn't come as a surprise given how the past three seasons have transpired. Minnesota attempted to trade Treadwell this offseason and at multiple points dating back to the 2018 season -- both on cut-down day and again toward the October trade deadline.

The 6-foot-2, 215-pound receiver never panned out to the level of expectations set forth when he was drafted in the first round as a big, physical outside receiver who also could line up in the slot and create mismatches while running underneath routes. Treadwell was passed up by others on the depth chart and failed to grab hold of the No. 3 receiver position behind Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.

The Vikings haven't parted ways with many first-round picks prior to their fourth season. The last was wideout Troy Williamson, the No. 7 pick in the 2005 draft, whom the Vikings traded for a sixth-round pick after three seasons.

Among Minnesota's other notable cuts Saturday was Kyle Sloter, who had the highest preseason passer rating among quarterbacks with 40 or more attempts. Sloter was 39-of-51 passing in the preseason for 443 yards, four touchdowns, one interception and a 120.0 passer rating.

The Vikings also attempted to find a trade partner for Sloter on Saturday before releasing him at the deadline. The quarterback came to Minnesota in 2017 after he was waived by Denver, where he began his NFL career as an undrafted free agent. Sloter was quickly promoted from the practice squad to active roster due to a non-contact knee injury Sam Bradford suffered early in the 2017 season and spent the season as Case Keenum's backup.

Sloter never saw action in a regular season game in Minnesota but routinely put up big numbers in preseason outings. Despite an impressive stat line in those games, Sloter never took a second-team rep at quarterback, which is the role Sean Mannion assumes this season in Minnesota behind starter Kirk Cousins.

"I don't know that you guys know all the little details about everything, you just see how he goes and does the game," Zimmer said of Sloter's preseason performances. "He's got to get a lot better in a lot of the other parts of being a quarterback. Making the right checks, getting people in the right formation, making sure the motion is there, not missing the time clock when it's eight yards in front of you. There's a lot of things that he has to get better at if he wants to be the backup quarterback."

Earlier in the preseason, Zimmer critiqued Sloter's abilities in practice versus what he does in games. While preseason practices during July and August are open to the media, practices in season are not. According to multiple team sources, those practices played the biggest factor in Sloter not moving up the depth chart over the past three seasons. His struggles operating the huddle, getting the right playcall and into the right cadence along with his accuracy and decision-making hindered Sloter's ability to cement himself as Cousins' backup.

COSTA MESA, Calif. -- With contract talks at an impasse, the Los Angeles Chargers granted running back Melvin Gordon's representation permission to seek a trade, according to a source.

The NFL Network was the first to report the news.

Gordon did not report to the start of training camp at the end of July, telling the Chargers through his representation that if he did not receive a new deal, he would sit out and demand a trade.

Gordon desires a contract extension that will compensate him among the top running backs in the league like Todd Gurley II, David Johnson and Le'Veon Bell, who earn an average of $13 million to $14 million annually.

The Chargers have offered Gordon a new contract that doubles his salary at roughly $10 million annually -- but so far that hasn't been enough to get Gordon into camp.

He is set to make $5.605 million in 2019 on the fifth-year team option of his rookie deal.

"I'm disappointed it has lasted this long," Chargers general manager Tom Telesco said about Gordon's holdout this week. "I pride myself in having solutions to problems, and I haven't solved this one yet. We know what he means to our team, and even bigger than that what he means to our organization. But the other side is we have a big game coming up this week with the Colts, and I'm confident in the players that we have on the field right now will play well."

NEW YORK -- Sean Manaea is scheduled to start Sunday for the Oakland Athletics at Yankee Stadium, making his season debut after recovering from left shoulder surgery.

Manaea will come off the injured list when rosters expand Sunday, manager Bob Melvin said. With an off day Monday, right-hander Mike Fiers (13-3) will be pushed back to Tuesday at home against the Los Angeles Angels to give him extra rest.

Oakland is locked in a tight race with Cleveland and Tampa Bay for the two American League wild cards.

Manaea went 12-9 with a 3.59 ERA in 27 starts last year and pitched a no-hitter in April against eventual World Series champion Boston. He was sidelined in late August and had surgery on Sept. 19.

The 27-year-old left-hander has been rehabbing in the minors this season, going 3-3 with a 4.71 ERA in eight starts -- and his most recent one was a gem. Manaea struck out 12 over seven shutout innings of two-hit ball for Triple-A Las Vegas on Aug. 23 at Tacoma.

"We just got to the point where we need to get him in a game," Melvin said. "He was really effective his last time out. He's shown he can be a really effective pitcher for us. And I think for the first time we're able to give Mike Fiers a couple days off, get him back at home where he's been really successful, too. So we just didn't want a guy as good as Sean Manaea sitting around that long and not pitching, especially after his last outing, which was by far his best of his rehab assignment."

Manaea, who joined the A's a few days ago on their road trip, made his major league debut for Oakland in 2016 and is 31-28 with a 3.94 ERA in 81 career games (80 starts). He was drafted 34th overall by the Kansas City Royals in 2013 and traded to the Athletics two years later in a deal for Ben Zobrist.

Melvin said Manaea is excited to get back on a major league mound against the AL East-leading Yankees.

"He's an excitable young man," Melvin said with a smile.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Cleveland Indians left fielder Tyler Naquin has a torn ACL in his right knee, the second major injury the team has suffered in a week as it makes a push for the playoffs.

Naquin was carted off the field after crashing into the wall while taking away a potential two-run homer from Joey Wendle in Friday night's 4-0 loss at Tampa Bay.

The 28-year-old Naquin was unable to put any weight on his leg. He was down on the ground, grimacing in pain, before being taken off the field in a cart.

Naquin ranks second in the AL with 11 assists. He is batting .288 in 89 games this season. He missed 22 games with a strained calf and underwent hip surgery last year.

Naquin was placed on the 10-day injured list Saturday. First baseman/outfielder Jake Bauers was recalled from Triple-A Columbus.

The Indians lost third baseman Jose Ramirez when he broke his hand last weekend. He had surgery Monday. The team estimates Ramirez could be back as early as Oct. 1, when the AL playoffs open.

The Indians trail first-place Minnesota by 4+ games in the AL Central but have a one-half game lead in the wild-card race.

Ireland coach Joe Schmidt says his side "restored a bit of self-confidence" in their 22-17 win over Wales.

After a 42-point drubbing against England a week ago, the victory in Cardiff provides Ireland with some much-needed momentum with their World Cup opener just three weeks away.

Ireland and Wales will meet again in Dublin next Saturday to conclude their World Cup preparations.

Schmidt will submit his provisional 31-man squad on Monday.

He will not confirm his panel until after next weekend's final warm-up game, and Ireland will go into the encounter with a renewed spring in their step as Schmidt admitted their loss at Twickenham had "created a lot of angst for people outside the environment."

With arguably only a handful a squad places still in the balance, a number of players strengthened their claim for a seat on the place with strong performances in Cardiff.

Prop Dave Kilcoyne was a dominant force while Andrew Porter impressed from the bench.

In the back three Andrew Conway and Will Addison, in his first game since January, both delivered eye-catching displays.

"It's a horrible couple of days ahead," said Schmidt.

"I know how hard these players are working and have worked for a number of years, this is the pinnacle."

With Jacob Stockdale, Rob Kearney and Keith Earls all but certain to travel, at least one of Addison, Conway and Jordan Larmour is likely to miss out on selection despite their ability to cover numerous positions.

Addison's accomplished performance against Wales came at full-back, although most of his Ulster appearances last season came at outside centre.

"He has such a balanced running style, he's accomplished at kicking," said Schmidt.

"But he'd underdone, he hasn't played a lot. His versatility is a huge strength for him."

Ireland's Pool A opener is against Scotland on Yokohama on 22 September.

STAVELOT, Belgium – Competitor Anthoine Hubert died Saturday after being involved in a crash in the FIA Formula Two event at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.

Hubert, the 22-year-old reigning GP3 Series champion and son of French rally driver Francois Hubert, was battling for a place inside the top-10 on the second lap of the race when he was involved in a crash at Eau Rouge.

Giuliano Alesi lost control of his car in the incident, leading to Hubert to also crash. Hubert’s car was then struck by the car driven by Juan Manuel Correa at the exit of the Raidillon corner.

Hubert was extracted from his car and attended to by medical personnel, but he succumbed to his injuries more than an hour later according to a statement from the FIA, Formula Two’s sanctioning body.

Correa was taken to a local hospital and was in stable condition according to the FIA statement while Alesi was checked and released from the medical center. The remainder of the Formula Two event was canceled Saturday afternoon.

The full statement from the FIA can be found below:

The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) regrets to advise that a serious incident involving cars #12, #19 and #20 occurred at 17:07 on 31/08/19 as a part of the FIA Formula 2 Sprint Race at Spa-Francorchamps, round 17 of the season.

The scene was immediately attended by emergency and medical crews, and all drivers were taken to the medical centre.

As a result of the incident, the FIA regrets to inform that the driver of car #19, Antoine Hubert (FRA), succumbed to his injuries, and passed away at 18:35.

The driver of car #12, Juan-Manuel Correa (USA), is in a stable condition and is being treated at the CHU Liège hospital. More information on his condition will be provided when it becomes available.

The driver of car #20 Giuliano Alesi (FRA) was checked and declared fit at the medical centre.

The FIA is providing support to the event organisers and the relevant authorities, and has commenced an investigation into the incident.