Isnt it a bit ironic that a fast bowler looks better in slow motion? The rhythm of the run-up, the intensity on his face, even the grunt as he lets the ball go seems to sound pleasant.Imagine a large ground, with an outfield so green you would be tempted to go out and have a picnic. That is Rajkots Saurashtra Cricket Association ground. Now picture it empty but for the odd person doing last-minute preparation. That is the SCA ground on Tuesday, the day before it makes its Test debut. There is a set of stumps at one end - actually its half of off and half of leg - and Mohammed Shami is at the other. It may be practice, but the ease with which he approaches the bowling crease is startling. This is a man not five months into his comeback from a debilitating knee injury.Shami has been helped in his recovery by the simplicity of his method. He has found after his struggles a delightfully repeatable bowling action: chest-on, arms at his sides, elbows cutting through the air all culminating in a high point of release. It hasnt always been so. His tendency to take large strides as he ran in threw him off but he has worked on shortening them, which now affords him greater balance. Importantly, he gathers momentum all the way through, starting slowly, constantly building speed until, as he gets to the popping crease, he is at maximum. One direction of energy flow. Up.Ishant Sharma, the man he is likely to partner with in Rajkot, on the other hand begins with a gallop, a few short, quick strides to get himself going, then they become longer and more even for a time before he has to accelerate again. This up-down-up trend may possibly contribute to the number of times he takes a tumble on his follow through or even reduce the chances of the seam of the ball coming out upright. Ishant too is returning from a break - illness as opposed to injury - but he may not be Indias premier fast bowler anymore.Shami is faster, and though he has played only 19 Tests he is also the countrys best at reverse swing. Outside Asia, if he bowls straight, he gets picked off; here in India, attacking the stumps, his way of bowling, is just the thing to do. When touring batsmen welcome the introduction of a fast bowler after their mind, feet, bat and gloves end up in all the wrong places against spin, ensuring there are no soft overs is vital to suffocating the opposition. It is as good a wicket-taking method as any.That is why Shami is important to India. He affords their lead bowlers R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja some rest. When they return, the pressure is still on, because Shami doesnt bowl the soft overs that the batsmen are after once they have been through the continuous examination from the spinners. If there is any reverse to be had, Shami extracts it.This was evident in the New Zealand series, spectacularly so when he bowled BJ Watling in Kolkata with one that shaped in through the air, hit a fullish length on off stump and then held its line to beat the outside edge. Shami dismissed the New Zealand wicketkeeper four out of six times, all within minutes of India realising there was reverse swing on offer.A grateful captain, Virat Kohli went out of his way to thank Shami for the New Zealand series win even though he took just eight wickets in three Tests. In a series where the spinners took 41 out of the 57 wickets that fell to bowlers, Kohli picked out a quick to thank. It was not just the wickets, though. It was the 75 overs during which the spinners - or at least one of them - could take a break without having to worry about pressure being released. Sometimes thats what you need: not have a batting side slip out of your teams grip when you are resting your tired fingers.Shami had to take cortisone injections and will that broken knee through the World Cup in 2015, before finally ceding to the need for surgery. That it was his knee troubling him made it worse because a seamer always has to put weight on it as he runs in. It is one thing to come back from an injury like that with skills intact, and quite another to then become one of the teams go-to bowlers.There is nothing particularly mysterious about Shami. He pitches the ball up and makes the batsman play. That is all he needs, though. Having put in hours and hours to perfect his wrist position behind the ball, the seam invariable comes out pristinely. On a pitch like Rajkot, cracked, with large barren spots between patches of grass, he could get a bit of uneven bounce too.In a world easily wowed by the next new thing, Shamis simplicity is refreshing. 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"Theyve both been real good," said Babcock. "Havent changed our minds." A decision has seemingly been made - Sundays Group B-deciding tilt against Finland ahead - but it could not have been an easy one. Price opened the tournament with a sturdy 19-save performance against the Norwegians, yielding just one goal. Bartolo Colon Jersey . Haas said he "felt a lot of pain" in his right shoulder when he slammed his racket to the ground in frustration after losing his serve at 3-3 in the first set. MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Twins have hit a bunch of home runs lately, a bright spot in a lost season.Hustle was the winning formula on Wednesday night.Miguel Sano legged out a couple of ground balls to create a pair of early runs before his RBI double tied the game in the decisive seventh inning, helping the Twins dodge a series sweep by beating the Kansas City Royals 6-5.We always talk about doing the little things right, said Brian Dozier, whose club-tying record home run streak ended at five straight games.Dozier, though, singled and stole second before scoring on Sanos double off Joakim Soria (4-8). Dozier also started a dazzling double play to finish the fifth inning, with a diving stop of Eric Hosmers sharp grounder and a glove flick to second base to get the ball out while he was flat on the dirt.Alex Wimmers (1-1) pitched a scoreless seventh in relief of Kyle Gibson to record his first major league victory. Brandon Kintzler gave up a two-out RBI single before finishing the ninth inning for his 14th save in 16 attempts.Sano beat a relay throw in the first inning to stave off a double play after his bouncer back to the mound and later scored on Robbie Grossmans single. In the fifth, the burly slugger ran fast enough after his routine grounder to be safe when shortstop Alcides Escobar threw high to first for an error. Byron Buxton raced home from second base to score on the play, touching home plate as he hurdled Sanos bat with a head-first dive to elude Buteras tag.I saw that play a few times where the runner stopped at third and he couldve had a chance at scoring, so I know Ive got to be ready every play and make sure I go full effort, Buxton said.First Sano. Then Buxton. The Twins were a blur on the basepaths.His speed paid off, for sure, manager Paul Molitor said about Buxton. Thats something we try to teach to be prepared to do if they make a mistake.Grossman and Buxton each homered for the Twins, who won for only the third time in their last 20 games.Thats part of baseball life. Sometimes you pitch good, sometimes not, Soria said.Kendrys Morales had three hits, including his sixth home run in the last eight games, and Drew Butera also went deep for the Royals. Danny Duffy struck out 10 batters without a walk over six innings, but the bullpen cost Kansas City an opportunity to creep forward in the AL wild-card race. The Royals stayed four games behind Baltimore, which holds the second spot.ddddddddddddWe had a chance to pick up ground, manager Ned Yost said. So that definitely hurts.MORALES OF THE STORYMorales, who also drove in a run with a fourth-inning single, went deep to lead off the sixth. He has a 10-game hitting streak, with 15 RBI and 17 hits in 42 at-bats for a .405 batting average during the stretch.LESSON NOT LEARNEDJarrod Dyson and Paulo Orlando started the game with singles, but both of them were picked off first base with a quick throw by the right-handed Gibson, who had only six pickoffs in 93 previous major league starts.PLOUFFES FAREWELL?Twins 3B Trevor Plouffe was diagnosed with a strain of the intercostal and oblique muscles on his left side, his third injury this year to that area including a broken rib. With only 22 games to go, hes not likely to play again this season. Sanos presence means Plouffe might have played his last game for the team that drafted him in the first round in 2004.If it happens that that was my last at-bat, it would be pretty sad. I hope its not, said Plouffe, who is making $7.25 million with one more year of eligibility for salary arbitration. My No. 1 thing, if I had my choice, would be to be back here.LONG WAY, MATESThe parents of Twins rookie James Beresford traveled 25 hours from their native Australia to surprise their son in a touching moment outside the clubhouse before the game that the team arranged. The 27-year-old Beresford, an infielder, played in 1,070 minor league games before being called up on Tuesday.TRAINERS ROOMROYALS: Butera played behind the plate for Perez, who was out with a bruised right wrist after being hit there by a pitch the night before.TWINS: 1B Joe Mauer was given a day to rest his strained quadriceps muscles, an injury that has lingered for the last three weeks.UP NEXTROYALS: After a travel day, Kansas City plays on Friday in Chicago. RHP Yordano Ventura (10-9, 4.22 ERA) will pitch, opposite LHP Carlos Rodon (6-8, 3.90 ERA) of the White Sox.TWINS: Following an off day at home, Minnesota hosts division-leading Cleveland on Friday. RHP Tyler Duffey (8-10, 6.24 ERA) pitches for the Twins, against RHP Danny Salazar (11-6, 3.78 ERA) of the Indians. ' ' '