Chelsea reached the Europa League semifinals by beating Slavia Prague 4-3 in a roller-coaster game on Thursday, helped by a Pedro brace in a first-half onslaught before withstanding a comeback bid by the Czechs after the break.

Chelsea, who will face Eintracht Frankfurt in the last four, were cruising 4-1 at halftime but Slavia's Petr Sevcik slammed home two strikes early in the second half, narrowing the aggregate score to 5-3.

With the Stamford Bridge crowd increasingly unsettled, and Slavia being roared on by their travelling fans, Sevcik spurned a chance to cut the deficit further.

But Chelsea, having won the first leg 1-0, held on to set up a semi against Eintracht, who beat visiting Benfica 2-0 to go through on away goals after a 4-4 aggregate scoreline.

A Chelsea triumph in the Europa League, a trophy they won in 2013, would secure a way back into the prestigious Champions League if they finish outside Premier League top four this season. They currently sit fifth in the table.

There was little hint of the tension to come when Chelsea raced into a 3-0 lead within 17 minutes, starting with Pedro chipping goalkeeper Ondrej Kolar after exchanging passes with Cesar Azpilicueta and Olivier Giroud in the fifth.

The Spain winger hit the post four minutes later only for the ball to rebound off Simon Deli's face for an own goal.

It was Pedro who carved out Chelsea's third when he squared for a simple finish by Giroud and the scurrying Spaniard claimed Chelsea's fourth in the 27th minute when he converted a rebound after Kolar saved from Giroud.

A minute earlier, Slavia's captain Tomas Soucek had given the boisterous Czech fans something to cheer when he powered in a header from a corner, leaving the door open for the visitors' improbable attempt to turn the game around.

Chelsea coach Maurizio Sarri said he had to get to the bottom of the familiar problem of his side losing their way in the second half of matches.

On Sunday, Chelsea conceded two goals shortly after the break in a 2-0 defeat at Liverpool in the Premier League, a pattern seen in other games.

"As usual in the last two months we started very badly in the second half," Sarri told reporters. "It's a big problem... We need a solution, we need to solve this problem."

Sarri, who has never won a major final as a coach, said he was determined to see his side triumph this time.

"For me, I think it is very important first of all to get to the final, but this time I don't want to just get to the final, I want to win the final," he said.

Slavia coach Jindrich Trpisovsky lamented his side's defensive performance in the opening 45 minutes.

"If we had managed the first half better, I think we could have gone through," he said. "Everyone says the English Premier League is the example to follow and that we cannot play against teams like this. But I think we showed today that we can."

American soccer players are objecting to the decision by the U.S. Soccer Federation to have them play Venezuela at Cincinnati's Nippert Stadium, claiming the playing surface is dangerous.

The match will serve as the U.S. team's final preparation match ahead of the 2019 Gold Cup, and will also mark the first time the U.S. has played in Cincinnati.

The U.S. National Soccer Team Players Association (USNSTPA) released a statement opposing the match, which will be played on a temporary grass field on top of the venue's artificial turf.

"The United States Soccer Federation is not advancing the interests of the sport of soccer or the interests of the players or the fans, but is solely focused on generating ever-increasing revenues and profits for the federation, its employees, its sponsors, and private businesses associated with the federation," the union said in a statement Thursday.

The union released an April 2 email it said it sent to USSF President Carlos Cordeiro in which players said the friendly "would be waste of time and resources, is a threat to player safety, and would be damaging to the effort to develop the United States men's national team and help the team achieve competitive success."

Nippert Stadium is the home of Major League Soccer's expansion Cincinnati team. The USNSTPA said "a game played on sod on top of artificial turf will be a waste of 90 minutes and also presents a substantially increased risk of player injury."

Reports have also stated that the U.S. will play Jamaica at Audi Field in Washington, D.C. four days earlier, though no official announcement has been made.

Venezuela is coming off an impressive 3-1 victory over Argentina in Madrid last month. The U.S. will begin play in the Gold Cup nine days after the Venezuela friendly, starting with a match against Guyana on Tuesday, June 18 in Saint Paul, Minn.

Following that match, the U.S. moves east to face Trinidad & Tobago on Saturday, June 22 in Cleveland before closing group play against Panama on Wednesday, June 26 in Kansas City, Kan.

The final is scheduled for Chicago's Soldier Field on July 7.

Information from ESPN FC's Jeff Carlisle and The Associated Press was used in this report.

Pedro scored twice to help Chelsea into the Europa League semifinals as 5-3 aggregate victors over Slavia Prague after a 4-3 win at Stamford Bridge on Thursday. On a day when his former club Napoli were eliminated, the win and progression preserves Maurizio Sarri's one remaining hope of winning silverware in his first season in England.

Positives

Chelsea set about their opponents with the speed, fluidity and intensity that Sarri wants to see in every match, and they were rewarded with a comfortable half-time lead that left their semifinal place in little doubt. There were no fresh injuries -- despite an early scare for Eden Hazard -- and Pedro was much improved

Negatives

What does Sarri say to his players at half-time? This was another second half that Chelsea began in a complacent haze, allowing Slavia to transform what should have been a comfortable passage into the Europa League semifinals into a tense and tetchy finale.

Manager rating out of 10

6 -- Sarri's starting XI began this match with everything he wanted from them, and they did enough first-half damage to reasonably put the tie to bed. Chelsea's habit of collapsing immediately after half-time really doesn't reflect well on him, though, and is a trend he cannot afford in the coming weeks.

Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)

GK Kepa Arrizabalaga, 5 -- His tendency to punch high balls that would be easy to catch appears to unsettle those around him, and it certainly didn't ease the second-half anxiety at Stamford Bridge. He also was beaten too easily for Petr Sevcik's first goal, though he wasn't culpable for Slavia's other strikes.

DF Cesar Azpilicueta, 6 -- Chelsea's most solid defender on a far-from-solid evening, he can point to the fact that the majority of Slavia's most threatening moments happened on the other side of the pitch. Did his best to keep those around them from becoming too rattled -- with mixed success.

DF Andreas Christensen, 5 -- Handled the threat of Lukas Masopust reasonably well, but the movement of replacement Peter Olayinka caused him problems, along with Slavia's increasingly ambitious midfield runners. Sarri was visibly frustrated with his uncertainty at times.

DF David Luiz, 4 -- Had little to do as Chelsea dominated the first half, but when called upon to provide a steadying presence at the heart of the home defence in the absence of the injured Antonio Rudiger, he fell short of what was required. Also went close to conceding a penalty when he handled a high ball.

DF Emerson Palmieri, 5 -- Goalkeeper Ondrej Kudela had no idea what to do whenever he sprinted forward to overlap Hazard, and one such run enabled him to centre the ball for Pedro to score his second after Ondrej Kolar had parried Olivier Giroud's shot. Didn't get anywhere near close enough to Sevcik for either of his goals, though.

MF N'Golo Kante, 7 -- His surging runs and incisive passes carved the visitors open at will in the first half, with one clipped ball in from the right flank creating a promising opportunity that Ross Barkley couldn't maximise. There were fewer flashes of what he does best after the break, but this was still a good display.

MF Mateo Kovacic, 5 -- Distributed the ball well enough early on from the "Jorginho position" at the base of Sarri's midfield but shows few instincts when it comes to protecting his back four, contributing to Chelsea's startling vulnerability, as Slavia rallied behind Sevcik's shooting.

MF Ross Barkley, 6 -- Started brightly, shifting the ball sharply to Hazard in transition in the lead-up to Pedro's opener and looking to drive forward whenever he could. Could not steady Chelsea as they lost their way at the start of the second half, however, and was sacrificed for Jorginho on 70 minutes.

FW Pedro, 7 -- Has looked his age (31) in recent months but was considerably sparkier here, initiating slick one-twos with Cesar Azpilicueta and Giroud for Chelsea's opener and also netting their fourth. Also accidentally created Simon Deli's own goal with perhaps the worst finish of his career.

FW Olivier Giroud, 8 -- It's hard to see him getting his wish of being Chelsea's first-choice striker next season, but he did everything he could here to bolster his case. Aside from Europa League goal No. 10, there were all the slick lay-offs and smart hold-up play that make him so valuable to this team.

FW Eden Hazard, 7 -- Gave everyone at Stamford Bridge an early scare when he stayed down after being kicked twice in the first two minutes, but he picked himself up to involve himself in much of Chelsea's best attacking play. Was finally replaced by Willian on 65 minutes.

Substitutes

FW Willian, 7 -- Provided energy and defensive work rate in place of Hazard when Chelsea needed a bit more defensive stability, though none of his attacking contributions yielded anything significant.

MF Jorginho, N/R -- Once again harshly booed by sections of Stamford Bridge when he replaced Barkley, he put one or two passes astray but did OK.

FW Callum Hudson-Odoi, N/R -- His every touch was met with palpable anticipation, but this was not a memorable cameo.

Big Picture

Kolkata Knight Riders' over dependence on Andre Russell is no state secret. In fact, it's more by design than accident. However, it is around the allrounder Russell that their team was built. The problem here is Russell, the bowler. He has conceded over ten runs an over, without completing his quota of four overs even once this season.

Against Chennai Super Kings at home, Russell leaked 16 in a momentum-shifting third over. Wickets through the middle kept Knight Riders in the contest but the lack of a fast-bowling option against the likes of Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja hurt them in the end.

Russell's fitness remains the other issue for Knight Riders; having hobbled around and off fields earlier in the tournament, he suffered another injury scare during practice in the lead-up to Friday's game against Royal Challengers Bangalore, but remains in contention to play. Regardless, perhaps it's time for Knight Riders to look at Russell purely as a batsman and pick another seamer, either at the expense of a batsman or a spinner, to give themselves a better chance of restricting oppositions. Kerala seamer Sandeep Warrier could come in, should that happen.

They are up against a side that knows a thing or two about losses piling up, but with playoff qualification only a distant theoretical possibility now, Royal Challengers unwittingly become the danger team you don't want to lose to. If the threat still seems too meek, the availability of the newly signed Dale Steyn should change that, after coach Ashish Nehra described the chances of the pacer playing as "very high".

In the news

Andre Russell has suffered another injury scare; he took a blow to the shoulder in practice two days before the match, and went for X-rays on match eve. While captain Dinesh Karthik confirmed that Russell remains in the team's plans for Royal Challengers, he said a final call would be taken closer to the match. West Indies, too, would be keeping their fingers crossed on this front, given they are due to name their World Cup squad on April 23.

Previous meeting

Andre Russell belted 48 off 13 balls as Knight Riders equalled their own record of chasing the most runs in the last three overs: 53. Astonishingly, they did this with five balls to spare.

Likely XIs

Kolkata Knight Riders: 1 Chris Lynn, 2 Sunil Narine, 3 Nithish Rana, 4 Robin Uthappa, 5 Dinesh Karthik (wk, capt), 6 Shubman Gill, 7 Andre Russell, 8 Piyush Chawla, 9 Kuldeep Yadav/Sandeep Warrier, 10 Prasidh Krishna, 11 Harry Gurney/Lockie Ferguson

Royal Challengers Bangalore: 1 Parthiv Patel (wk), 2 Virat Kohli (capt), 3 AB de Villiers, 4 Moeen Ali, 5 Marcus Stoinis/Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Akshdeep Nath/Shivam Dube, 7 Pawan Negi, 8 Yuzvendra Chahal, 9 Dale Steyn, 10 Navdeep Saini, 11 Kulwant Khejroliya

Strategy punt

• The spin trio of Sunil Narine, Piyush Chawla and Kuldeep Yadav have struggled against left-handers this season, conceding 230 runs in 28.2 overs, with only three wickets between them. Will that tempt Royal Challengers to team-up Moeen Ali, who has been in good form, and Shimron Hetmyer, who was left out after a few early failures, in the middle order? With Marcus Stoinis hardly bowling, it might be worth giving Hetmyer a few more opportunities, regardless.

• Moeen Ali averages nearly 38 at a strike rate of 171 at No.4 in the IPL. Those are his best numbers in any position in the league, giving RCB enough reason to stick with him in that position. From Knight Riders' point of view, Moeen has struggled most against the googly this season, dismissed thrice off the delivery that happens to be Piyush Chawla's stock ball.

• Moeen Ali bowls 82% overs his overs in the middle (overs 7 to 15), but averages just 17 at an economy rate of 6 runs per over against left-handers in the IPL. Will Virat Kohli gamble and throw the ball to Moeen if Sunil Narine opens the batting for Knight Riders?

Stats that matter

• RCB find three of their bowlers in the top 10 on the list of most expensive bowlers at the death (overs 17-20) in the IPL since 2015 (qualification: minimum 25 overs bowled at the death). Umesh Yadav leads the way, conceding 12 runs per over, Tim Southee finds himself placed third at 11.6 runs per over, and Mohammed Siraj occupies the seventh spot at 10.7 runs per over

• KKR spinners have the second-worst bowling average this season (41.2)

• KKR spinners are the second-most expensive this season (7.9 runs per over)

• RCB have lost all five matches when they have lost the toss. KKR have lost four of five matches when they have lost the toss

Pacer Mohammad Amir, the hero of Pakistan's previous triumph in an ICC tournament, will not play the World Cup in England as things stand. He was not part of the 15-member squad named by the PCB on Thursday for the showpiece event. Left-arm pacer Usman Shinwari also missed out. Another significant name missing from list was power-hitter Asif Ali.

Amir will, however, travel to England for the preceding ODI series against England. His non-inclusion for the World Cup should come as no surprise, going purely by the numbers. Since that stunning showing in the final of the Champions Trophy final - incidentally, also in England - he has taken five ODI wickets in 101 overs of bowling at an average of 92.60 per wicket, the worst numbers among all bowlers to have sent down over 600 balls in this period.

The deadline to announce squads is April 23, but teams can make changes till May 23 without seeking permission from the ICC's event technical committee. ESPNcricinfo understands the April 23 date was put in place to allow the ICC to proceed with logistics like hotel and flight bookings.

PCB chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq announced the squad at a press conference at Gaddafi Stadium, and said the side had been picked according to the conditions and included reliable batters, trusted wicket-taking bowlers and dynamic fielders.

"In England and Wales, conditions play a critical role. With this in mind, we have selected a three-dimensional side, which gives the captain a wide range of options of whatever game plan he chooses on a match day. We have experienced batters, who are backed up by bowlers with plenty of variety and variation to exploit any type of conditions.

"This is more or less the side we have been playing since the ICC Champions Trophy 2017. I have absolute trust that this side has grown further in experience and stature since 2017. Supported by the flair, skill, talent and killing-instinct, this side has the capability and potential to rise to the occasion and produce strong performances. While picking the side, we've tried to cover all bases by assessing our strengths as well as analysing each opponent, the match venues and the event format."

Before the World Cup, Pakistan travel to England for a one-off T20 and five ODIs. Amir apart, the other addition to the World Cup squad for the England series is Asif Ali. Asif has 200 runs in the eight ODI innings he has played for Pakistan in the lower-middle order, with a highest of 50 not-out and, importantly, a strike rate of 130.71. One could argue he is one of the few power-hitting options for Pakistan at the moment, but there remained the question of balance to the XI should he have been included for the World Cup.

The experienced Hafeez has been picked in the squad subject to fitness; he is still recovering from the surgery he had on his right thumb after picking up an injury while fielding in the Pakistan Super League in mid-February.

Mohammad Rizwan is one of the more unfortunate players to miss out, given his performances in the five-match series against Australia. He was Pakistan's second-highest run-scorer, hitting two hundreds while having a largely spotless time behind the stumps. He remains one of the fittest players in and around the Pakistan team, a point the coaching staff have always been eager to make. It was a point Inzamam was happy to acknowledge saying the decision to leave him out was a difficult one, but he was heartened by the depth of the second-string players.

"The six players we had rested for the Australia series were automatic selections at the World Cup for us," Inzamam said. "As it happens, our captain Sarfraz Ahmed is a wicketkeeper and he has delivered for Pakistan over several years. Rizwan is our second wicketkeeper, and his performance is good to see. Him not being selected certainly doesn't make him a bad player."

The squad leaves for England on April 23 to play five ODIs, and it is in these games that Amir and Asif Ali, chosen specifically for that tour, must impress enough to force the selectors to change their mind.

Squad for the World Cup: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Abid Ali, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Hafeez (subject to fitness), Sarfaraz Ahmed (capt & wk), Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Hasan Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Junaid Khan, Mohammad Hasnain, Haris Sohail

Additions for England series: Mohammad Amir, Asif Ali

Mumbai Indians 168 for 5 (Krunal 37*, de Kock 35, Rabada 2-38) beat Delhi Capitals 128 for 9 (Dhawan 35, Rahul 3-19, Bumrah 2-18) by 40 runs

Hardik Pandya monstered 32 off 15 balls, Krunal Pandya struck 37 not out off 27, and together the two put on a fifth-wicket partnership worth 54 off 26, which became the centrepiece of Mumbai Indians' 40-run victory.

Mumbai Indians were 104 for 4 after 15.1 overs, heading towards a par-score in the range of 150 on a slow Feroz Shah Kotla surface when the brothers united. Although they took a little time to get into the slog mode, they exploded from the end of the 17th over - Mumbai reaping 54 runs off the last 19 balls of the innings.

The in-form Hardik produced the more blistering innings, walloping his eighth ball for a six way over long-off, whipping his 12th ball into the long-leg boundary, eventually finishing up with three sixes and two fours in his innings. Krunal had been slow to start, hitting only 17 off his first 18 deliveries, but he found the boundary four times off the last eight balls he faced to assist in the furious finish that Hardik spearheaded.

Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan began the chase well, hitting 48 in the Powerplay, but Delhi Capitals soon lost their way. Shaw, Dhawan, Colin Munro and captain Shreyas Iyer all lost their wickets in quick succession, sliding to 63 for 4 after 10.2 overs, the required rate creeping up towards 11. None of the Capitals' middle-order batsmen could launch a serious challenge to Mumbai's score, and after losing regular wickets, the team eventually mustered only 128 for 9 in response to Mumbai's 168 for 5.

Rahul Chahar's super spell

His first over - the second of the innings - went for ten runs, but Chahar came back after the Powerplay to deliver the spell that sunk Capitals' chase. Dhawan and Shaw had laid a half-decent foundation, making 48 off the first six overs, before Chahar beat Dhawan's reverse sweep, and ended up bowling him off his pads. That over cost only four runs, but the next Chahar over would prove to be even more fruitful. The required rate now having climbed to well over nine, Shaw came down the track to try and slam Chahah over long-on but only ended up being caught. Later - after Krunal Pandya had dismissed Colin Munro in the intervening over - Chahar bowled perhaps the delivery of the match to dismiss Shreyas Iyer, drifting his legbreak through the air, pitching it on middle and leg, then getting it to spit away sharply to beat Iyer's push and collect his off stump. His second, three-over spell had seen him claim three wickets for nine runs.

Delhi's Kotla woes

Capitals' coaches have already complained this season that the Kotla surface has favoured spinners more than they would like, but four games in, perhaps it is the Capitals outfit that needs to adapt. Where Mumbai's bowlers relished taking pace off the ball, Capitals perhaps underbowled their spinners, Amit Mishra only delivering three overs, despite having bowled Rohit Sharma with a sharp legbreak early in the game.

Capitals have now lost three of their four home matches this season. Their only win at the Kotla came via a Super Over.

Mumbai's supporting hands

The Pandya brothers' final explosion was perhaps the definitive partnership of the game, but Rohit Sharma and Quinton de Kock also made substantial contributions to the eventual total, adding 57 off 37 balls for the first wicket. De Kock looked set for a big innings too, before he was needlessly run out by Suryakumar Yadav.

And while Chahar made the best bowling contribution for Mumbai, Jasprit Bumrah also put in another outstanding performance, seaming the ball early on, and hitting his yorkers beautifully on his way to a bowling analysis of 2 for 18 from four overs. Bumrah also effected the run out of Keemo Paul, throwing down the stumps at the non-striker's end, after collecting the ball following a delivery.

The excitement surrounding Pakistan's World Cup squad announcement had been powered by one burning question: would Mohammad Amir, in spite of his numbers, find a way into the 15? With Pakistan blessed with no fewer than eight pace bowlers to choose their World Cup contingent from, competition for places was high, and the arguments for and against had been recycled so thoroughly even Extinction Rebellion wouldn't find cause for protest.

Yet, it is remarkable to observe the sequence of events that led to Amir being left out. Just 21 months ago, he was the man that won Pakistan a match they arguably wanted to win more than any other. It was a big final, the Champions Trophy, and they faced the side they find defeat against hardest to countenance. Amir took the new ball defending a big total, and within nine overs sent Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli back to the pavilion. This was what Amir needed to do, and on the day it mattered more than any other he did it comprehensively.

You might have thought that day Amir would never be left out of a major squad again. But since then, his ODI record has plunged so dramatically questions around his place became inevitable. He has taken just five ODI wickets in almost two years and 101 overs of bowling at an average of 92.60 per wicket. It is the worst among all bowlers who have sent down at least 600 balls in this period. The second-worst specialist fast bowler in this period in terms of wickets taken to runs conceded is England's Mark Wood, and he averages 47.75, nearly twice as good as Amir.

This would be enough to see any bowler left out with little controversy, but the soft spot Pakistanis have in their hearts for Amir simply refuses to harden. That, plus the fact the World Cup will be held in England, the same place he tormented India in the Champions Trophy final - this made many believe he could rekindle the magic and to not allow him the chance to do so would be a grave mistake. Beyond the sentimental and the optimistic cases for Amir, there was a stout cricketing justification for his potential selection, and that was his economy rate.

I still think @iamamirofficial could be a lethal weapon to have in English conditions. He has a chance to prove that in the England series and be selected for World Cup by May 23rd. Good luck Amir, you can do it.

— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) April 18, 2019

My biggest concern is the pace dept. This squad lacks a leader of the pace attack, leader of the herd who is aggressive and goes out to attack. Hopefully Amir can be that.
In case that doesn't happen, @RealHa55an has to step up and fill that role along with @JunaidkhanREAL

— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) April 18, 2019

During his barren spell, Amir went at 4.58 per over - impressive by any standards, exceptional by modern ones. That has always been a strong point in his game; his career economy rate stands at a first-rate 4.78. However, there's a certain intellectual deviousness about making the case for Amir on these grounds. No one who enjoys watching Amir swoons over his miserly economy rate; his role in the team has never been to dry the runs up. If Amir is in the team, his job is to take wickets at the top, swing the ball around corners and trouble the biggest batsmen on the planet. Rechristening him as a bowler with a holding role would be a sharp career reinvention.

However, this isn't the end of the road for the 27-year-old by any means. His inclusion in the 17-man squad to face England before the World Cup means the door is ajar for a dramatic last-minute call-up to the showpiece event. The PCB can make changes to the team till May 23 without seeking ICC approval, and should Amir perform to the satisfaction of the selectors, hope still remains. But for the first time in a while, he needs to provide a reason for the selectors to change their mind; he is no longer an automatic selection.

Chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq and the coaching staff have played a tactically astute game here. The question around Amir has never been about his talent, but whether he had the drive to continue to put in strong, impactful performances for the national side. If the threat of having a World Cup spot snatched away from him doesn't galvanise him, they will have reasoned, nothing will, and the decision to leave him out is justified. Conversely, if this stings him into returning to the form that, at its heights, renders him near unplayable in the sort of conditions England can throw up, Pakistan will have gained a rejuvenated player, confident in his game and firing on all cylinders ahead of the World Cup.

England has, after all, always been a fateful place for Amir, the country with which his career will, for better and worse, be defined. It is the country where he fell as far as a cricketer can fall while still a teenager, the place where he made his comeback half a decade later, and the venue of his greatest triumph to date. He now has the opportunity to turn it into the location of yet another career resurrection. He might only have been booked for the warm-up act as things stand, but the possibility he will be a headliner in England yet again cannot yet be discounted.

India captain Virat Kohli agrees that Vijay Shankar offers balance to the Indian batting order, but has not committed to the Tamil Nadu allrounder batting at No. 4.

On Monday, after announcing India's World Cup squad, MSK Prasad, the chairman of selectors, said that Vijay was identified as the No. 4.

However, Kohli agreed with Prasad only to the extent that Vijay was a "three-dimensional" player and a better choice compared to the other options and combinations that India had tried out in the past.

The search for the No. 4 started after the Champions Trophy and stretched to the ODI series at home against Australia in March, during which period 11 batsmen were tried out. The longest incumbent was Ambati Rayudu, but Prasad said he lost the race to Vijay.

Kohli echoed that, saying Vijay was a "proper" batsman, who provided another allrounder option to India. "We tried a lot of things. There were a few combinations that we tried," Kohli told India Today. "Eventually when Vijay came in, it was three dimensional: he can bowl, he can field, he can bat.

"He is a proper batsman as well. That just gave us an option, saying why not have that kind of balance which other teams have had all these years. From that point of view we all agreed on it."

Prasad had pointed out that Vijay would get to bat at No. 4 to begin with, with Kedar Jadhav and Dinesh Karthik being other options for the spot along with KL Rahul. However Kohli refrained from being definitive. "We are pretty sorted with how we want to go about the World Cup. Obviously who bats where is the decision for later."

Other than who is best suitable for No. 4, the other big debate over the past two years has been over MS Dhoni's role in the ODI side, keeping in mind the fact that his signature explosive finishing power has been on the wane.

After an extended period stretching over a year where he had not scored a half-century, Dhoni picked up three successive 50s in the ODI series win in Australia in January. Kohli stated then that Dhoni was best suited at No. 5 even though his deputy Rohit Sharma had said personally he would have India's senior most player at No. 4.

In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, Prasad had said Dhoni would be the most important guy for India at the World Cup. Prasad said that Dhoni had finally started finding his touch, which was evident in Australia and New Zealand where he played "fearlessly".

Kohli has always stood by Dhoni and he backed him once again. He said that when he was struggling to settle down in the initial years of his career, Dhoni, who was the Indian captain, had given him the space to grow. Today he was reciprocating and that was not as a favour but because Dhoni "deserved" that space.

"For me loyalty matters the most. When I walked into the team, he had the chance of trying someone else after a few games. Although I grabbed my opportunities really early, he gave me an opportunity to understand my game and gave me time in the game.

"For me those things are very important because I know the kind of phase I was coming into. And if he is going through a phase where he has to work things out, he deserves that respect, it's not like I [gifted] it to him.

"You look at what he's done for the country, no one can [gift] him that space, he deserves it. So we were just doing our bit to tell people that you need to think in the same manner.

"It's not like we are giving him something, he deserves this and he is intelligent enough to know what's going on in his life, in his cricket, everything. It was important to give him space, for which people did not have much patience at that time.

"Now after 12 months people are saying he is the most important factor in the World Cup, which is true. We knew deep down all along."

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona Cardinals quarterback Josh Rosen has finally broken his offseason silence on the brewing situation with him, the organization and the likely first overall pick, Kyler Murray.

But as Rosen has done throughout his career, he did it his way.

Rosen opened up to SITV in an interview, which was released Thursday, conducted during a trip to the Grand Canyon with some UCLA teammates.

"I think the season probably went as poorly as it could possibly go," Rosen said from an RV. "But within that, I had an unbelievable time. I think when people talk about, like, you can't listen to criticism or you can't read articles, you have to be aware of what's going on to a certain extent. So I definitely understand the situation.

"It's annoying, but it is what it is. Football's a business, and I definitely respect the higher-ups and their decisions. We won three games, and each one of those wins -- to me, it felt like we won the Super Bowl. And that feeling is so intoxicating, and that's why I just want nothing more than to be part of a team next year and have the same opportunities to go out and compete."

Rosen has remained quiet about his future with the team this offseason.

The Cardinals, who finished 3-13 last season, have the No. 1 pick in next week's NFL draft and are widely expected to take Murray, the Heisman Trophy winner, if they don't trade the pick. That would mean Rosen would either be traded or be teammates with Murray while competing for a starting job that was his last season.

On Tuesday, new Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury said Rosen has been "phenomenal" through the offseason and has been the first one to show up to offseason workouts. General manager Steve Keim said he has had "good dialogue" with Rosen and called the quarterback a "pro's pro."

"I think the best advice I've ever gotten in life, from so many different people, is control what you can control," Rosen said. "And whatever decisions are made, it's my duty to prove them right if they keep me and prove them wrong if they ship me off."

IT WAS LATE JUNE in 2017, and D'Angelo Russell had settled into a regular offseason routine after his second season with the Los Angeles Lakers. It was a simple schedule: sweat through three separate workouts and return home to relax with a few friends by the pool.

"It was like the same thing, every day, every day," Russell said. "I would leave the house, go train, go to another place, go train, I was doing like three-a-days. And I remember throwing a party, a pool party -- every day, it was a little get-together, me and my boys and stuff -- at my house.

"And mid-pool party -- we're getting barbecue -- I get the phone call."

It was Russell's agents. They had news of a possible trade.

The destination was unknown but they told him it could be one of the two NBA teams in New York.

"Stay near my phone," Russell said of the instructions given to him.

His agents called back a few minutes later, this time with Nets president and general manager Sean Marks on the line. Russell was headed to Brooklyn.

"I was like, 'Let's go! I'm ready, let's do it!'" Russell said.

The Nets were coming off a combined 41 wins over the previous two seasons, but Russell was undeterred, excited for a fresh start away from a Lakers franchise -- led by then-president Magic Johnson -- that days later would draft point guard Lonzo Ball No. 2 overall out of UCLA.

"I just knew it was kind of going that way [toward a separation from the Lakers]," Russell said. "In this league, when front offices change, you kind of don't have a feel for your future, you know what I'm saying?"

Though Russell changed coasts, the deal sent him from one rebuild to another. And boy were the Nets stuck in theirs -- Brooklyn was lacking the traditional tools for team-building: lottery picks.

Four years before they traded for Russell, the Nets swung big in the now-infamous 2013 trade with the Boston Celtics centered on Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. It was a franchise-gutting move that resulted in just one playoff series victory and cost Brooklyn three first-rounders and a pick swap that turned into the No. 1 overall selection in 2017 (the pick became Markelle Fultz).

Now, the Nets are back in the playoffs for the first time since an opening-round exit in 2015. And Brooklyn didn't waste any time putting a scare into the third-seeded Philadelphia 76ers, stealing a Game 1 win before a 76ers rout evened the series on Monday.

The Nets remain heavy underdogs, but just playing in mid-April is a testament to a process of their own: savvy roster moves and strong planning and patience from Marks, head coach Kenny Atkinson and the entire organization.

The rest of the NBA has taken notice.

"The staff, the players have all bought in. The system is in there," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "They've slowly but surely built a culture."

IT WOULD BE EASY for Atkinson to say he always knew the Nets would get to this point, that he never lost faith amid all of the losing. But there were moments in his first season -- a 20-62 slog of a 2016-17 campaign -- when Atkinson had trouble trusting Brooklyn's vision.

"You're just questioning yourself," Atkinson said. "The next day, you're renewed, refreshed and you get back on track, but I have to be honest: There were doubts."

Marks provided the sounding board Atkinson needed during the franchise's dark times.

"Sean is my stabilizer," Atkinson said. "I'm a little more emotional, going with the ups and downs of the daily season. He's a guy I can vent to, he can counsel me.

"The great thing about Sean: He's been a player, he's management and he's been a coach. He's done scouting. ... He knows what the whole process is like."

Under former GM Billy King, head coach Lionel Hollins and then interim coach Tony Brown, Brooklyn won only 21 games the season before Atkinson arrived in 2016. The draft had provided little solace (the Nets haven't had a pick better than No. 22 overall since 2010).

With plenty of losing but without any of the high draft picks that came with it, Marks and Atkinson worked with what they did have. It has been a flurry of unheralded moves that slowly turned Brooklyn's fortunes:

Spencer Dinwiddie and Joe Harris signed multiyear, team-friendly minimum contracts in 2016. Prior to Harris signing with the Nets, many NBA front offices questioned whether he belonged in the league at all. Dinwiddie was on his fourth NBA team in three seasons. Both players developed into key contributors under Atkinson and have since re-signed multiyear deals with the club.

"A lot of people thought [Harris] would be a depth player in this league -- probably not a rotation player," Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "Now he's a starter. He'd be a player that most teams would covet."

Brooklyn traded Bojan Bogdanovic and Thaddeus Young for packages that returned first-round picks that became Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert, respectively. Young and Bogdanovic are now key players for the Indiana Pacers, but Allen -- eighth in the Eastern Conference in blocks this season as Brooklyn's defensive anchor -- and LeVert have become vital pieces of the Nets' young core.

"A lot of guys have had a similar journey, have a chip on their shoulder," Dinwiddie said. "And [we're] also playing for an organization that really kind of gave you your first real shot in the NBA. That's where I take my pride from."

Brooklyn wasn't in position to attract top free agents with its cap room, so Marks & Co. used the space to acquire large veteran contracts (Kenneth Faried, DeMarre Carroll and Jared Dudley), forcing teams to attach future draft picks in those deals (two first-round picks and three second-rounders).

The 2017 trade for Russell has certainly been the highest-profile move. Russell, a restricted free agent this summer, blossomed into a first-time All-Star behind career-high averages in points (21.1), assists (7.0) and shooting percentages from the field (43.4) and from deep (36.9).

"A lot of guys have had a similar journey, have a chip on their shoulder. And [we're] also playing for an organization that really kind of gave you your first real shot in the NBA. That's where I take my pride from."

Spencer Dinwiddie

Taken in totality, Brooklyn has had many more hits than misses since Marks took over for King, whose tenure as Nets GM ended in January 2016.

During King's run with the Nets, he traded 11 first-round picks, made four head-coaching changes and spent more than $123 million in luxury tax (including a then-league-record $90.6 million in 2013-14).

"That they were able to dig out of the Pierce-Garnett trade this quickly is remarkable," a Western Conference executive said. "Credit to them for staying the course."

On the court, part of the Nets' road back has been identifying and adhering to a specific approach on both ends of the floor: less midrange shots for them, and more for their opponents.

During the regular season, Brooklyn gave up the second-most and took the third-fewest midrange shots in the league. The Nets ranked fifth in 3-point field goal attempts, gave up the sixth-fewest made 3-pointers and allowed the third-lowest 3-point field goal percentage.

"No matter who's been on the floor for them, you know this is Kenny's team," an Eastern Conference scout said.

The third-year head coach still gets on the floor with his players, a byproduct of his roots as a top player development assistant coach in Houston, New York and Atlanta. He's humble, and self-reflective -- a trait that has endeared him to his players.

"I'm not a 10-year coach that's kind of like, 'Hey, this is how you do this.' I'm learning with the guys and I think they appreciate that," Atkinson said. "There's no airs here.

"I know I have a long way to go as a coach and they know they've got a long way to go as players."

DURING ALL-STAR WEEKEND, Russell and Dwyane Wade are in a hallway inside Charlotte's Spectrum Center, walking side-by-side when a nearby camera catches their conversation.

"You know you're one of the best in this game right?" Wade tells Russell. "You know that, right?" Months later, Russell smiles when he talks about Wade's message that night.

"You hear a player of his caliber give you that credit and validation, it's big," Russell said. "Hearing it from your peers versus hearing it from anybody else, just knowing that you belong and knowing that you're in a position to be great -- that's what I want to be."

Russell has carried the Nets for stretches when Dinwiddie and LeVert were sidelined by injuries. And he has become the kind of go-to scorer that every team -- even one with Brooklyn's egalitarian approach -- needs in the playoffs.

"With talent comes responsibility, and he has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders and he's responding fantastically," Atkinson said.

Teammates point to Russell's summer work, which focused on preparing his body for the rigors of the season. "I think now he's seeing the results and running with it," Carroll said.

Russell's career season seems to have defused the narrative that followed him from his Lakers days, a label of a poor leader who lacked maturity. That was fueled by Magic Johnson, who questioned Russell's leadership after trading him to Brooklyn.

"I ignored that reputation [based on what was said in the media]," Atkinson said. "I was on the lookout, too, right? It's kind of like a test run. That stuff, it's not even in my mind anymore.

"I like the person, I like the player every day, more and more."

Russell set a franchise record for 3-pointers made (227), is the youngest Net to reach the All-Star Game since Buck Williams in 1981 and scored more clutch-time points than any Net other than Vince Carter's total in 2006-07.

"It's confidence," Russell said. "I trust my craft. I know what I'm capable of."

Carroll says he sees it as well. The veteran wondered about Russell's approach and professionalism before he shared a locker room with him. Not anymore.

"Before I thought he was just like a knucklehead. Now, he's right next to me all the time [in the locker room]," Carroll said. "He's got a good heart. All these things people said about him, they really don't know him on a personal level.

"Sometimes you can do things and they can blow up in a bigger light than what you expected. I think some of the things he regrets. But I think at the end of the day, him coming to New York, a different scenery, having good vets around, a good group around him, now he understands where he stands in the game of basketball."

As far as the Nets stand, it's clear that the front office is building something sustainable for years to come in a new, post-LeBron James Eastern Conference.

"The fact that I'm here with you guys in this playoff scrum," Atkinson said. "I didn't expect it to come this soon. It's hard to believe, quite honestly. I keep saying we're ahead of schedule and proud of that."

Russell, Allen, Dinwiddie, LeVert -- they've all coalesced under Atkinson to form one of the most entertaining teams in the East. And the future looks bright. Brooklyn is expected to have enough cap space for a max free agent this summer (and can make room for two, depending, in part, on how it handles Russell's restricted free agency).

The Nets recently decided to extend the contracts of Marks and Atkinson -- "It's like locking up your point guard and your center for your franchise," Russell said -- and, for the first time since the Boston trade, they own their own first-round draft pick. The irony, of course, is after all the years when they lost enough games to be in line for a top pick but didn't own it, the Nets won't be a lottery team.

Playoff team sounds better, anyway.

"We have a lot of pride, just to see how far the organization has come over the last three years," Harris said. "Since Sean and Kenny have come in, we've gotten to this point where I think definitely we can feel proud about bringing playoff basketball back to Brooklyn."