A few years ago, at a gig (The Wildhearts, if memory serves; it may well not), the following exchange took place.

"As I came in this evening, I saw a homeless guy just outside," the lead singer said. "Now, if everyone here gives him a quid as they leave…"

Cheers and applause rang out. But then the bass player (again from memory, but memories play tricks) chimed in. "That's simplistic and irresponsible," was the basis of his response. "If everyone gives him a quid, he'll probably have overdosed by midnight."

The point of all this? That sometimes it pays to challenge the pervading view. And that just because something sounds like a good idea on a superficial level, it may do little to resolve underlying issues. It may even make them worse.

All this came to mind when listening to Joe Root explain England's decision to open the batting with Jason Roy in the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston. It was, Root said, "exciting" and "different" that England had "gone this way". And it will, he said, give England "an opportunity to put pressure on the opposition at the top of the order".

Roy is, no doubt, a fine player. And a dangerous player. His impact in the World Cup was huge. Put simply, England looked a different side when he returned after injury. Irrespective of statistics, nobody contributed more to that success.

But even his own county coach believes that Roy has a better chance of demonstrating his undoubted skills at Test level if he bats in the middle-order.

Against the red, Dukes ball - a ball that moves far more laterally than its white, Kookaburra counterpart - and against a highly-skilled attack on surfaces which are expected to provide assistance to bowlers, Roy faces the steepest of learning curves.

He doesn't open for Surrey in first-class cricket, remember. Asking him to fulfil a role in Test cricket which he does not fulfil at either county level or for The Lions appears oddly optimistic. And like a failure in the planning process. England are asking a huge amount of Roy here.

The idea that trying an aggressive opening batsman is "different" is palpably nonsense. To a greater or lesser degree, all of Alex Hales, Ben Duckett, Moeen Ali and Adam Lyth might be defined as aggressive batsmen. Equally, the likes of Nick Compton and Keaton Jennings were encouraged to be more 'positive' - an almost meaningless word in cricket; who goes out there trying to be negative? - during their spells in the side. It didn't work out for any of them.

Attacking the bowling is the get-rich-quick scheme of Test cricket. And while getting rich quickly is, without doubt, the best way to get rich, there is a reason that people view such schemes with deep suspicion. They tend to be simplistic. They tend to be a con.

None of this language is new to England. Over the last few years, the rhetoric around the side has been about positivity, aggressive batting and responding to most situations by counter-punching.

Instead, pressure can be put on bowlers by forcing them into fourth and fifth spells in a day. Instead aggression can be expressed by forcing the opposition into the field for a fourth or fifth session in succession. By grinding them into the dust as India did so well to England on home soil at the end of 2016. England spent 190 overs in the field in India's first innings in Chennai and 183 in their first in Mumbai. On both occasions, India scored at under four-runs-per-over and on both occasions they won by an innings.

But to do that, batsmen need to have sound defensive games. And they have to be patient. And they have to be playing in a set-up that respects and encourages such an approach. You could be forgiven for wondering how many England batsmen such criteria would fit. In the longer term, it is encouraging that Ashley Giles, the director of men's cricket at the ECB, recognised this and promised to act to improve the development system.

England's home record is more than respectable. They've not been beaten in a Test series in England since 2014 - before Trevor Bayliss took over as coach - with a feature of their success being the manner in which their all-rounders have allowed them to compensate for their top-order fragility. They are, without doubt, a talented side who could win this series.

But they were bowled out for 85 by Ireland last week. They were bowled out for 77 by West Indies in January. And 58 by New Zealand in March 2018. They have reached 400 only once in their last 32 Test innings and were bowled out for under 200 on two more occasions in the Caribbean.

Sooner or later, that top-order fragility is going to cost them. And with the batting returns of Jonny Bairstow and Moeen having declined (the former is averaging 24.42 in Test cricket since the start of the 2018 English season; the latter 17.00 since September 2017), there can be less confidence about the ability of that middle-order to lead the recovery.

It therefore becomes ever more important that the top-order sell their wickets dearly. That they dare to be dull and prepare to be patient. That they allow bowlers sessions where few runs are scored and outside edges are passed. That they embrace some of the old-fashioned virtues of Test cricket.

Not since 2014 has a Test been drawn in England when the weather has not intervened. And on that occasion - the Trent Bridge Test of 2014 - the pitch was so poor it was censured by the ICC. There is plenty of time in Test cricket. Time for batsmen to play themselves in, to leave balls outside off stump, to hit the ball on the ground.

This England team is wonderfully, endlessly entertaining. But if they want to go the extra mile - from entertaining and dangerous to undisputed world Test champions - they may well have to embrace a little more caution and a little less aggression. The outcome of the Ashes may depend upon it.

Worcestershire 159 for 8 (Parnell 81*) beat Derbyshire 156 for 4 (du Plooy 52) by two wickets

Wayne Parnell scored his maiden Vitality Blast half-century for Worcestershire Rapids as they overcame a wobbly start and finish to their innings to edge out Derbyshire Falcons by two wickets at New Road.

The South African all-rounder, who celebrated his 30th birthday yesterday, rescued the Rapids after they had slipped to 35 for 3 in reply to Derbyshire's 156 for 4. He reached his half century off 34 balls with the aid of four sixes and one four.

Ben Cox and Ross Whiteley proved crucial support but then the Rapids lost four wickets for seven runs when the finishing line was in sight before victory was secured with one over to spare.

Parnell finished unbeaten on 81 from 46 balls with seven sixes and two fours to move the Rapids within one point of leaders Lancashire Lightning.

Derbyshire were put into bat on the same pitch used for the Rapids' run blitz against Durham on Sunday.

Dillon Pennington took the new ball and his third legitimate delivery accounted for captain Billy Godleman (0) who shaped to cut and was caught behind.

Luis Reece found the England Under-19 paceman to his liking in his second over as he collected two fours and a huge six over mid-wicket.

But he perished to the last ball of the power play on 29 when deceived by a slower ball from Pat Brown which he scooped straight to mid-off.

Skipper Brett D'Oliveira came into the attack and Wayne Madsen (28) fell to a fine diving catch by Parnell at cover with the South African celebrating with a series of press-ups.

The legspinner struck again when Matt Critchley (9) tried to repeat his straight six from earlier in the over and was pouched at long off. The ball was sticking in the pitch and batsmen were struggling to time the ball.

Veteran opening batsman Daryl Mitchell tied down the Derbyshire batsmen with a mid-innings spell of four overs for just 15 runs.

But Leus du Plooy and on loan Kent all-rounder Darren Stevens gave the innings some late momentum with an unbroken stand of 70 in seven overs.

Du Plooy brought up a 46-ball half-century with five fours and Stevens ended unbeaten on 26 from 18 deliveries.

In reply, Fynn Hudson-Prentice claimed the scalps of Martin Guptill and Riki Wessels in the space of four balls in his first over, and that became 35 for 3 when Callum Ferguson (6) was caught off a leading edge at cover from the first delivery by Reece.

Parnell added some impetus to the Rapids innings and a six over mid-wicket off Reece brought up the 50 in the eighth over.

Cox gave him good support until he was caught around the corner off Mark Watt (20) but Whiteley proved to be a useful ally to Parnell in a stand of 49 in just four overs. He made 20 off 12 balls before he was bowled by Watt and then Ed Barnard (0) was run out from the following delivery.

Mitchell (5) fell to Rampaul with 10 still needed and then D'Oliveira (1) was bowled by the West Indian paceman at 149 for 8.

But Parnell drilled Alex Hughes for six over long off amidst great excitement and relief amongst the 3,000 crowd to settle the contest in the Rapids' favour.

England 139 for 5 (Winfield 26*, Brunt 25*) beat Australia 122 for 8 (Perry 60*, Brunt 3-21, Ecclestone 3-22) by 17 runs

England have denied Australia a limited-overs whitewash with a consolation 17-run victory in the third T20I, the final encounter of their Ashes series, having finally struck on a successful combination of youth and experience.

Australia's dominance of the series - they had retained the Ashes after the drawn Test and won them outright with victory in the first T20I - meant the most England could hope for from the match was to restore some pride and unearth hope for the future.

They achieved both, first as seasoned pair Katherine Brunt and Lauren Winfield combined for an unbroken 55-run stand off 39 balls for the sixth wicket, then as Brunt contributed with the ball alongside 20-year-old spin duo Sophie Ecclestone and Mady Villiers, the latter claiming two wickets on her international debut.

Set 140 for victory, Australia struggled to establish a partnership, with opener Alyssa Healy's 28 one of only two scores in double figures for the tourists. The other was, predictably, Ellyse Perry, whose unbeaten 60 off 50 balls emphasised her position as Player of the Series.

Perry's 378 runs at an average of 94.50 and 15 wickets at 12.85 made her the top run-scorer and leading wicket-taker for the Women's Ashes, during which she also became the first player - man or woman - to reach 1000 runs and 100 wickets in T20 Internationals. But, lacking support from her team-mates during the run-chase, the task proved too great in Bristol, even for her, as Brunt and Ecclestone snared three wickets each and Essex allrounder Villers took 2 for 20 from her four overs.

Going into the match, Australia were not content to settle for a 12-points-to-four series scoreline, looking to ram home their advantage and leave England with just two points from the Test draw. But the hosts left them with no option, taking control of the game.

That was despite the hosts losing a steady stream of wickets through much of their innings.

Interestingly, Amy Jones - who has fallen to Perry four times in the 25 balls she has faced from the star Australian allrounder - dropped down the order from opener to No.5 and avoided her nemesis altogether. Perry only bowled two overs at the start of the England innings, which went for 16 runs.

Danni Wyatt, opening in Jones' place made a neat 20 off 19 balls but failed to go on with it when she was bowled by Megan Schutt. Similarly, Heather Knight made a start, but fell on 23 when she was run out by an excellent throw from Perry to wicketkeeper Healy. Jones reached 19 off as many balls before she was caught behind off the bowling of Ashleigh Gardner.

That brought Brunt to the crease and she and Winfield set about posting a competitive total, with Brunt reaching 25 off 18 balls and Winfield 26 off 22.

Brunt struck early in the Australian innings to remove Beth Mooney, but when Ecclestone removed the danger of Meg Lanning, who had scored a record 133 not out in the first T20 of the series, lbw for just two, the match looked to be on an even keel. Villiers tipped it in England's favour when, after dropping a return catch off Healy in her first over, she had the opener caught by Ecclestone off a full toss in her second and then had Ashleigh Gardner stumped to put Australia at 45 for 4.

Brunt and Ecclestone did the rest, with Ecclestone claiming two wickets with the last two balls of her four overs to remove Jess Jonassen and Delissa Kimmince.

Player of the Match Brunt said that at times through the series England mentally "just weren't there".

"I was surprised with the amount of people that turned up tonight," Brunt told Sky Sports. "Through the last four weeks we've not played our best cricket by any means and we've been out-played in every way nearly and so for people to keep turning up and supporting us even though it's been how it's been has been brilliant."

England captain Heather Knight described the win as "bitter sweet" after the series result.

"We talked about drawing a line after the second [T20] loss the other day and today being day one of our turnaround and trying to rebuild to being back to the team that we were and competing and pushing on and really trying to catch up the Aussies because they've played very well," Knight said. "They've out-played us, they've won the key moments in the start of that series and then the momentum in the series was very hard to change. I'm really proud of how the girls stuck together and it's nice to get a consolation win."

Australia's 3-0 sweep of the one-dayers set them up for the entire Ashes series, with Perry's 7 for 22 in the third match a highlight followed by her 116 and 76 not out in the Test before Lanning's brilliant knock in the opening T20.

Lanning said, as disappointing as finishing on a loss was, it did little to take the gloss off her side's performance throughout the series.

"Disappointing tonight not to get the result but still very proud of the group as to how we've performed throughout the series, when the series was on the line were able to perform at our best, which is nice," she said.

Durham 143 for 2 (Short 70, Clark 59*) beat Leicestershire 142 for 7 (Ackermann 52) by eight wickets.

An onslaught from D'Arcy Short guided Durham to a dominant eight-wicket victory over Leicestershire Foxes in their Vitality Blast North Group clash at Emirates Riverside.

Short was relentless in his innings, blasting the Foxes bowlers to all parts of the ground before he fell for a brilliant knock of 70. He and Graham Clark refused to let the visitors settle in their opening stand of 118. It allowed the home side ease over the line and record their third win in five games in the competition.

Colin Ackermann had earlier made a half-century for the Foxes, but his side struggled to time the ball and their total of 142 for 7 was never going to be enough once Short found his stride. Leicestershire slumped to their fourth defeat in the Blast and will require a special effort in their remaining matches to have any hope of reaching the knockout stages.

The Foxes made a bright start to their innings and were able to put the Durham seamers on the back foot. Harry Swindells displayed aggression in the powerplay, finding the boundary four times as well as dispatching Brydon Carse over the rope. Swindells was looking well set at the crease, but was run out on 29 by Peter Handscomb after setting off slowly for a single.

Leicestershire began to get bogged down by the accuracy of Short and Liam Trevaskis' left-arm spin. Mark Cosgrove attempted to pull Short to the boundary, but was caught short of the fence by Handscomb. Arron Lilly then became Short's second victim, mis-timing a strike to the legside and was snagged by Jack Burnham for only 10. The collapse continued when Trevaskis bowled Lewis Hill on the charge to leave the visitors with work ahead them four down for 74 at the halfway stage.

Ackermann provided much needed impetus to the Leicestershire innings, sweeping Short to the fence for back-to-back boundaries in the Aussie's final over. Durham continued to make inroads when Harry Dearden chipped a Carse delivery to Graham Clark, who took a good catch over his shoulder.

The Foxes skipper kept his side on course for a decent total, reaching his half-century from 39 deliveries. However, Ackermann fell in the final over to Matty Potts off a blinding catch from Handscomb diving to his left in the deep. The wicket prevented Leicestershire reaching the 150-run mark, posting a total of 142 from their 20 overs.

Durham's reply began with a solid start from Short and Clark, with the latter being dropped on six by Lilley at deep backward square leg. Short then took the lead in the partnership, freeing his arms by blasting Will Davis over the top for the first six of the innings.

The Aussie upped the ante, dispatching Gavin Griffiths for four consecutive boundaries to push the run rate beyond 11 runs per over. Short reached his half-century from 26 deliveries, with his tenth boundary of the innings, leaving Durham in a dominant position at the end of the powerplay.

Clark maintained the pressure on the Leicestershire bowlers, supporting his partner at the other end, with a six of his own over the head of Davis into the stand. Short fell going for big strike to many, missing a straight delivery from Callum Parkinson. Clark kept the momentum going and scored his first Blast fifty of the term. Although Ben Raine was dismissed cheaply, Durham cantered over the line with 32 balls remaining.

CINCINNATI -- The playoff-contending Oakland Athletics have acquired starter Tanner Roark from the Reds, filling out a rotation that also could have left-hander Sean Manaea back soon.

Oakland dealt outfield prospect Jameson Hannah to Cincinnati. The Reds are sending Oakland $2.1 million to offset much of the $3,225,806 remaining in Roark's $10 million salary.

The trade was announced Wednesday, about an hour before the deadline for making deals. The A's began the day a half-game out of the second AL wild-card spot.

Roark lasted a season-low 3 1/3 innings during Cincinnati's 11-4 loss to the Pirates on Tuesday. He is 6-7 in 21 starts with a 4.24 ERA and can become a free agent after the season.

The Reds traded Roark a few hours after getting Trevor Bauer from the Indians for right fielder Yaisel Puig in a three-team swap that included San Diego.

Manaea struck out eight in six innings of a rehab start at Triple-A this week. He's likely to get one more rehab start before being activated. He had shoulder surgery last September.

Hannah, a 21-year-old center fielder, is hitting .283 with 31 RBIs and a .723 OPS in 92 games for Class-A Stockton in the California League. He was a second-round pick by the A's in the 2018 MLB draft.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The Atlanta Braves added two more relievers before the trade deadline, acquiring All-Star closer Shane Greene from the Detroit Tigers, and San Francisco Giants right-hander Mark Melancon on Wednesday.

The Braves gave up two minor-leaguers -- left-hander Joey Wentz and infielder Travis Demeritte -- for Greene. They sent right-handed pitchers Dan Winkler and Tristan Beck to the Giants.

The Braves also acquired catcher John Ryan Murphy from the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday for cash considerations.

Greene, 30, has a 1.18 ERA and 22 saves this season. The right-hander recorded 32 saves last season in his first full year as a closer.

Melancon, 34, is a three-time All-Star who has a 3.50 ERA in 43 games with the Giants this season.

Greene and Melancon are both under contract through the 2020 season. Greene is eligible for arbitration, and Melancon has a base salary of $14 million.

The Braves already bolstered their bullpen Tuesday night with their acquisition of right-hander Chris Martin from the Texas Rangers.

Luke Jackson has served as Atlanta's closer this season, recording 17 saves. However, he has struggled lately, posting a 13.50 ERA with two blown saves in seven appearances since the All-Star break. He blew a save chance on Wednesday against the Washington Nationals, but the Braves won 5-4 in 10 innings.

For the Tigers, the trade of Greene likely clears the closer role for Joe Jimenez, who has been the team's closer of the future for some time. Buck Farmer, who has nine consecutive scoreless appearances to begin the second half, could force himself into the mix if Jimenez initially struggles.

The Chicago Cubs have acquired outfielder Nicholas Castellanos from the Detroit Tigers.

The Tigers received right-handed pitching prospects Alex Lange and Paul Richan in the deal.

Castellanos is hitting .273 with 11 home runs and 37 RBIs this season. His best year came in 2017, when he hit 26 home runs and drove in 101 runs with a .272 average.

The 27-year-old should provide a big boost offensively to a Chicago team that entered Wednesday's action a game behind the first-place Cardinals in the NL Central and atop the wild-card standings. His 119 doubles over the last three seasons trail only Red Sox star Mookie Betts in that span. And Castellanos' 37 doubles this season are tied with Boston's Rafael Devers for the most in the majors.

He also will greatly improve their chances against left-handed pitching. The Cubs have the third-worst batting average against lefties this season at .235, while Castellanos has mashed lefties throughout his career, especially this season in which he is hitting .347 against southpaws.

Castellanos has a .790 OPS in 2019, and his OBP while batting second is .357.

The move was completed just ahead of Wednesday's 4 p.m. trade deadline.

Richan, 22, is 10-5 with a 3.97 ERA in 17 starts and Lange, 23, is 1-9 with a 7.36 ERA in 11 starts at the Class A level this season.

The Cubs also agreed to two other trades on Wednesday. Chicago sent catcher Martin Maldonado to the Houston Astros for utility man Tony Kemp and traded right-handed reliever Carl Edwards Jr. to the San Diego Padres for left-hander Brad Wieck.

It's also the Tigers' second major trade as Detroit agreed to trade closer Shane Greene to the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday.

The Houston Astros made the biggest move of Wednesday's trade deadline, acquiring right-hander Zack Greinke from the Arizona Diamondbacks for four prospects.

Greinke joins a fearsome rotation that includes Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole.

Houston sent right-hander Corbin Martin, right-hander J.B. Bukauskas, first baseman Seth Beer and infielder Josh Rojas to Arizona to complete the deal.

"We are just really shocked and ecstatic,'' Cole said before Houston played at Cleveland on Wednesday, adding, "I'm really proud to be an Astro right now.''

Cole said when the players learned of the deal there was "a lot of hooting and hollering at 4:07. We are ecstatic. We're getting a Hall of Fame pitcher, a craftsman.''

The Astros also acquired right-handers Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini and minor league outfielder Cal Stevenson from the Blue Jays, sending outfielder Derek Fisher to Toronto.

The Diamondbacks moved to replace Greinke in the rotation by acquiring right-handed starter Mike Leake from the Seattle Mariners.

Leake is 9-8 with a 4.40 ERA this season for Seattle. He is in the fourth year of a five-year, $80 million contract.

Greinke is 10-4 with a 2.90 ERA in 23 starts this season. Entering Wednesday, the right-hander, who won a Cy Young Award with the Kansas City Royals in 2009, was 197-122 with a 3.36 ERA in 16 major league seasons.

He pitched against the New York Yankees on Wednesday, striking out seven batters in five innings. Greinke left the ballpark without commenting to reporters.

For Houston's rotation, it's a case of the rich getting richer.

Before the Greinke trade, Astros starters ranked first in the majors in both strikeouts per nine innings (10.5) and opponents' batting average (.213). Their ERA ranked fourth (3.68). Verlander leads the AL in wins (14) and ERA (2.73), and Cole tops with the majors with 212 strikeouts.

With Verlander and Greinke, Houston now is one of two teams with two active Cy Young winners on its roster (the other pair being Rick Porcello and David Price of the Boston Red Sox).

Verlander, who won the Cy Young in 2011 while with Detroit, expressed excitement about the Greinke deal.

Wow... that escalated quickly! ??? @astros

— Justin Verlander (@JustinVerlander) July 31, 2019

Greinke gives the Astros insurance for after this season in case Cole leaves in free agency. Greinke is in the fourth year of a six-year, $206.5 million deal that he signed with Arizona prior to the 2016 season.

As part of the deal, the D-backs are sending $24 million to the Astros, who then will be responsible for the remaining $53 million on the deal, sources confirmed to ESPN's Jeff Passan.

STATESVILLE, N.C. — GMS Racing announced Wednesday that Manpower U.S. will sponsor 16-year-old Sam Mayer for his NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series debut at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway on Aug. 15.

Mayer will also pilot the No. 21 ManpowerGroup Chevrolet Silverado at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway on Oct. 26 and ISM Raceway near Phoenix, Ariz., on Nov. 8.

ManpowerGroup®, the parent company of Manpower and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wis., is the leading global workforce solutions company which helps organizations transform in a fast-changing world of work by sourcing, assessing, developing and managing talent that enables them to succeed.

Mayer, from Franklin, Wis., is currently competing for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East championship. In seven starts this season, he has two wins, six top-five and six top-10 finishes, two poles and has led 333 laps. He has also run six ARCA Racing Series events in 2019 earning five top-five finishes.

“I can’t believe I’m going to be making my first Truck Series start at Bristol next month, and I’m really excited ManpowerGroup will be on board with me for my three races this year,” Mayer said. “To have a worldwide company support me this early in my career is pretty incredible. I led every lap and won the K&N race at Bristol in April, so I’m hoping we can have a really solid performance for them in the truck race next month, as well as at Martinsville and Phoenix.”

“ManpowerGroup has called Milwaukee home for over 70 years and we’re passionate about helping people achieve their potential and develop in their career, so that’s why we’re excited to support Wisconsin native Sam Mayer in his career journey,” said Michael Stull, Vice President of Manpower North America

ROSSBURG, Ohio – Christian Eckes will tackle a different surface when he straps back into the No. 51 Toyota Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports this week in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series.

Eckes will take to the dirt for a rare appearance, tackling the half-mile Eldora Speedway during the seventh annual Eldora Dirt Derby, the only dirt race for any of NASCAR’s top three divisions all year long.

Thursday night’s event will mark the 18-year-old’s dirt debut in Truck Series machinery, as he fills the seat that was occupied last year by NOS Energy Drink USAC National Midget Series star Logan Seavey.

Seavey was originally expected to return to Eldora and chase a Truck Series win this week, but when USAC’s Pennsylvania Midget Week landed on the same week as the Dirt Derby and left Seavey unable to make the trip west to Ohio, Eckes got the call to fill the void.

Eckes does have experience racing on the dirt in the ARCA Menards Series, with one career dirt victory at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in August of last year.

“This race is going to be extremely different for me,” noted Eckes. “I don’t have a lot of experience on dirt, and what little dirt experience I do have is on a mile (track). It’s definitely going to be a change, but it looks like Eldora is a cool place to race dirt. Logan certainly did a great job for this team last year.

“Like I said, this is going to be a bit of an adjustment for me, but I’m really excited to get in the No. 51 Mobil 1 Tundra and see what we’ve got.”

Eckes is coming off his first-career top-five finish in the Truck Series, finishing fourth last week at Pocono Raceway, and feels that he and his squad are knocking on the door of his maiden Truck Series victory.

“I feel like we’re really close to a win,” said Eckes. “At Pocono last week, we were just missing it by a little bit to be able to go and run the leaders down. Obviously at Gateway, I felt like we had a race-winning truck, and we just had that issue on the last lap. Hopefully we have speed at Eldora this week.

“This team deserves another win; they’ve been close and hopefully we can give them one on Thursday night.”