Kent 175 for 6 (Kuhn 55*) beat Essex 153 for 7 (ten Doeschate 58*) by 22 runs

Kent Spitfires maintained their leadership of the Vitality Blast South Group after defeating Essex Eagles by 22 runs at a jam-packed Canterbury. An unbeaten 55 from Heino Kuhn coupled with some wily bowling and a decent fielding stint helped ease the hosts to a third straight victory in front of their biggest crowd of the summer.

In pursuit of 176 at an asking rate of 8.8 an over, Essex lost dangerman Cameron Delport in only the third over. Having set off for a risky single to cover, the South African - fresh from his 129 of 49 balls against Surrey - was rightly sent back by Varun Chopra only to lose the race against Adam Milne's spectacular direct hit.

Tom Westley followed in Hardus Viljoen's next over, losing his off stump when working across the line, then Kuhn held on to a stunning catch, diving full-length to his left at cow corner to account for Chopra.

The asking rate was already above 10 an over as Eagles reached 67 for 3 after 10 overs when Dan Lawrence smeared across one from Viljoen to be caught at wide mid-off. Then, when Ravi Bopara clattered an innocuous wide and short delivery from Fred Klaassen to extra cover, Essex's chase was all but run despite Ryan ten Doeschate's valiant, unbeaten 58 - the top score of the game.

Batting first after winning the toss, Kent openers Daniel Bell-Drummond and Zak Crawley posted 51 in 29 balls before Essex removed Crawley, bowled around his legs after missing a Matt Quinn full-toss.

Crawley was replaced by Ollie Robinson, who duly launched the first six of the night over mid-wicket off the bowling of Bopara as Kent reached 93 for 1 at the innings mid-point. Bopara won revenge in his next over when Robinson, in risking another slog-sweep from outside off, dragged the ball onto his stumps.

Kuhn, back in the Spitfires side having missed Kent's opening two games under the concussion protocol, opened his boundary account with a reverse paddle against Simon Harmer and then clattered Delport back over his head for six.

Bell-Drummond was caught at deep midwicket for a season's best 43 then, two runs later, Mohammad Nabi danced past his first ball, a turning delivery from Adam Zampa, to gift Adam Wheater a stumping.

With 30 deliveries remaining, Alex Blake aimed for the short, leg-side boundary only to hole out and give offspinner Simon Harmer his sole success in a canny spell of 1 for 28. With boundaries hard to come by - Kent went 28 balls without one - Spitfires' rookie Jordan Cox skied to midwicket, only for Kuhn to redress the balance by taking 21 off Shane Snater's last over to finish unbeaten with 55 from 31 balls.

Nottinghamshire 198 for 5 (Duckett 64, Hales 63) beat Derbyshire 171 for 8 (Reece 61, Gurney 5-30) by 27 runs

Alex Hales and Ben Duckett scored half-centuries before Harry Gurney took five wickets to carry the Nottinghamshire Outlaws to a 27 run victory over the Derbyshire Falcons in the North Group at Derby.

Hales made 63 from 42 balls and Duckett 64 from 40 as they added 92 in nine overs to lift the Outlaws to 198 for 5 after the Falcons had put them in. Luis Reece scored 61 from 42 balls but Gurney bowled superbly to claim 5 for 30, his best T20 figures, as the Falcons could only manage 171 for 8.

The Outlaws had made a measured start with Hales and Joe Clarke selecting placement over power until Clarke skied a big drive at Fynn Hudson-Prentice in the sixth over. Duckett drove Matt Critchley for the first six in the ninth over as the Outlaws engaged the turbo with Hales driving Alex Hughes onto the media centre balcony and lifting Mark Watt for another maximum.

The Falcons lost Logan van Beek with a shoulder injury before Duckett survived a swirling catch to cover on 32 off Watt who kicked the air in frustration when Hales drove him straight for his third six.

Duckett pulled Critchley over the midwicket boundary but the leg-spinner broke the stand in the 15th over when Hales was caught at wide long-on and Dan Cristian became his second victim when he sliced a drive to mid-off.

Tom Moores was bowled behind his legs by Ravi Rampaul and Duckett was brilliantly caught on the cover boundary but Samit Patel struck 14 from five balls to set a challenging target.

Hudson-Prentice took two fours from Matt Carter's opening over and Billy Godleman pulled Gurney for six but the seamer responded by having Hudson-Prentice caught at cover off a sliced drive.

Reece drove Carter over long-off and pulled Jake Ball for another six to take the Falcons to 53 for 1 at the end of the Powerplay. Godleman was reprieved on 19 when Duckett just failed to take a diving one-handed catch at cover, injuring himself in the process, and the Outlaws turned the screw to leave the Falcons needing 115 off the last 10 overs.

The climbing run rate forced Godleman to pull Gurney to deep square leg and although Reece drove Patel for his third six to reach fifty off 29 balls, Wayne Madsen became Imad Wasim's first victim for the Outlaws in the 14th over.

Reece and Leus du Plooy took 14 from a Carter over but Reece was caught behind trying to scoop Gurney who settled it by removing Critchley and du Plooy in his final over as the game finished in pouring rain.

Surrey 144 for 8 (Pope 43, Mills 2-16) tied with Sussex 144 for 8 (Wright 76*, Batty 3-20)

Twelve days after his heroics in the World Cup final, Jofra Archer made a highly impressive return to action with two wickets as Sussex Sharks tied with Surrey in a Vitality Blast thriller at Hove.

The 24-year-old showed no ill effects from the side injury which troubled him throughout the World Cup during four hostile overs, bowled in three spells at a cost of 21 runs, during which he picked up the wickets of Aaron Finch and Surrey's top scorer Ollie Pope, who was dropped on 16, for 43.

Fifteen days after removing him for a golden duck in the World Cup semi-final, Archer had Finch well caught on the square-leg boundary by Delray Rawlins. He returned in the 14th over with a superbly disguised slower ball to dismiss Pope, who had just hit four boundaries in an over off Danny Briggs and appeared to be guiding Surrey to victory.

Archer had bowled in the nets under the supervision of England's medical staff earlier in the day and could now be in the Ashes squad when it is named on Saturday.

A 6000 sell-out crowd had given Archer a standing ovation when he went out to bat earlier in the evening and they were treated to a thrilling finale. Surrey looked favourites with 29 needed off the last five overs with five wickets in hand but Tymal Mills dragged Sussex back into contention when two searing yorkers accounted for Tom Curran and Ryan Patel in the 18th over.

Then off the final ball of the 19th Rikki Clarke holed out to long-on leaving ninth-wicket pair Gareth Batty and Imran Tahir with the task of scoring 12 from the last over from David Wiese, who was bowling his only over of the night.

Wiese conceded singles off the first two balls then Tahir stylishly uppercut a full toss for six. One run came off the next two deliveries, leaving Batty to score three to win off the final ball. He drove to long-on and the pair scrambled back for a second after Sussex missed with two throws at the stumps, either of which would have run him out had they been on target.

Earlier, Sussex had finished on 144 for 8 which was something of a disappointment after skipper Luke Wright and Phil Salt had smashed 50 in the first four overs.

Salt, dropped by Curran off his second ball when on nought, hit 27 off ten balls including successive sixes off Jade Dernbach. But the Sharks were never the same when he holed out later in the same over and it needed an unbeaten 76 from skipper Wright to get them to a competitive total.

Sussex only managed six boundaries after the sixth over with Wright unable to go onto the offensive because wickets were falling too regularly at the other end. Veteran offspinner Batty had figures of 3 for 8 at one stage while only Ben Brown got into double figures. Wright hit 14 off Jordan Clarke in the 18th over and finished with 76 off 59 balls including a six and nine fours.

Australia 226 for 3 (Lanning 133*, Mooney 54) beat England 133 for 9 (Winfield 33, Schutt 3-25) by 93 runs

Not content to have retained the Ashes, Australia captain Meg Lanning ground England into the dirt with a record-breaking knock before her bowlers ensured their opponents stayed down, consigning them to their worst-ever T20 International defeat, with two more matches left in the series.

The 93-run victory meant Australia won the Ashes outright with a 10-2 points lead, an 8-8 series draw the most England could have hoped for going into the match at Chelmsford, where they had been unbeaten in 14 limited-overs internationals.

Lanning took that option off the table early, guiding Australia to their highest T20I total.

"That was our big priority coming over here, was to win the Ashes outright and today was a really big game," Lanning told Sky Sports. "It was nice to get on the front foot early and put England under pressure.

"I said to Beth Mooney out there, 'this is too much fun, let's keep going.' It was one of those days where everything clicked. I got away with a few early and the wicket was really good. It was coming onto the bat nicely and any width you were able to hit through the line and the outfield was pretty quick as well."

Having missed seven months after undergoing shoulder surgery following Australia's 2017 World Cup semi-final exit, ruling her out of the last edition of the Women's Ashes, Lanning made up for lost time. Her unbeaten 133, reached off just 63 balls, was the highest individual innings in women's T20 Internationals.

Lanning scored 88 not out early in her comeback when Australia inflicted England's previous worst T20I defeat - by 57 runs in the tri-series in India in March last year. It was there that Australia also posted their previous highest T20I total of 209 for 4.

England were without first-choice keeper Sarah Taylor, who withdrew from the T20 leg of the series as part of the ongoing management of her anxiety issues. She was replaced behind the stumps by Amy Jones, with accomplished fielder Fran Wilson coming into the squad but not selected in the team.

The hosts had a poor evening in the field, highlighted by Lanning's let-off on 85 when Tammy Beaumont put down a straightforward chance at point. By that stage, Australia were 143 for 2, having just lost Mooney after a 134-run partnership with Lanning.

Mooney struck 54 off 33 deliveries before Sophie Ecclestone broke up the pair, tempting the batsman down the pitch as she looked to loft the ball over the leg side but skied to Lauren Winfield at mid-off instead.

Lanning overcame being struck on the helmet in the jaw area by a ball fired in from the field by Natalie Sciver as she completed a run early in the innings. Unruffled, she nonchalantly hit Ecclestone for consecutive fours on the last two balls of the over. It was an early indication of the clarity and determination Lanning would show through the rest of her innings in which she picked off boundaries - 17 fours and seven sixes - to all areas of the ground with a combination of power hitting and clever placement.

She went to her second T20I hundred with a six swung into the crowd at deep square leg, and continued to cash in during the closing overs, hammering home the ruthlessness of Australia's victory.

Australia coach Matthew Mott described it as one of the best T20 innings he had seen.

"I think it was a masterclass of playing good cricket shots," he said. "She just went out there from ball one with great intent, hit the ball along the ground a lot and just threaded it through the field and it was great to watch.

"Also Beth Mooney, I thought, really set the tone early and having that left and right-hand combination was really important for us. It was pretty much the perfect batting innings and then we did what we had to do with the ball and we held on really well."

Lanning's cool-headed knock was just what Australia needed, too, after losing the wicket of Alyssa Healy on the fifth ball of the match when the opener skied a Kate Cross delivery to Sciver, who took an excellent overhead catch running back from midwicket. It also meant Ellyse Perry, the star of Australia's 3-0 ODI series sweep and last week's drawn Test, entered with just three overs remaining. She was not out on 7 at the close after Ashleigh Gardner had contributed a handy 27 off 14 balls.

Megan Schutt was the pick of the Australia bowlers, who collectively picked up where the batsmen left off, keeping England under pressure. Schutt dismissed opener Jones for a duck on the way to claiming 3 for 25 off her four overs.

Winfield and Katherine Brunt offered spirited cameos with 33 and 29 not out respectively, but the life had been sucked out of the England team long before.

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Arizona Cardinals rookie coach Kliff Kingsbury didn't hold back when asked Friday about how former first-round pick Robert Nkemdiche showed up to training camp.

"Not in shape, I guess," the usually reserved Kingsbury said. "And that's kind of where we'll leave it. I mean, he's on PUP and he's working through that. When he is cleared, we'll work with him."

Nkemdiche began training camp on the physically unable to perform list as he continues to recover from the ACL surgery he had in December.

Kingsbury's answer was a detour from his typical responses this offseason. The first-year head coach has developed a reputation for saying little about players and not naming names.

Nkemdiche, the 29th overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft, was arrested on June 6 for speeding and driving with a suspended license. A defensive lineman whose career has been riddled with injuries, he has 44 career tackles and 4.5 sacks -- all coming in 2018.

The Cardinals did not pick up the fifth-year option on his contract.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The New York Giants are already down two wide receivers in training camp after Corey Coleman suffered a torn ACL and is likely out for the season, the team announced Friday.

Coleman and Sterling Shepard were both injured Thursday during the team's first training camp practice. Coleman likely suffered the injury during one‐on‐one drills early in practice but still participated until its conclusion.

"After hearing the news of Corey, definitely a bit deflated," teammate Golden Tate said of the mood in the wide receivers room Friday morning.

Shepard, who is expected to play a bigger role after the trade of Odell Beckham Jr., fractured his thumb and will be evaluated on a week-to-week basis. The team is optimistic that he could be ready for the season opener in just over six weeks.

Coach Pat Shurmur said he was "not concerned" about Shepard's injury and that he would be on the field, running, on Friday.

The injuries leave the Giants especially thin at wide receiver. Coleman was supposed to compete for a big role, potentially as the team's third receiver.

"He was a guy that had a chance to be in there and compete to either start or have a role," Shurmur said.

The Giants remade the wide receiver position this offseason, particularly with the trade of Beckham to the Cleveland Browns. The receiver corps currently has Tate followed by Cody Latimer, Russell Shepard, Bennie Fowler, Reggie White Jr., Alonzo Russell and rookie Darius Slayton, among others.

Slayton, a fifth-round pick this year, is dealing with a hamstring injury.

General manager Dave Gettleman said the Giants would hold a workout Saturday for wide receivers.

"We're going to do something," Gettleman said.

The shortage is even more notable considering he moved one of the NFL's best receivers this spring. The topic isn't going away anytime soon, especially given the spate of injuries one day into training camp.

"Odell Beckham plays for the Cleveland Browns now. We're moving on," Gettleman said when asked about Beckham's most recent comments from a GQ story about keeping the team's brand alive. "Wish him the best."

After a follow-up question, Gettleman quickly interrupted: "No more Odell questions."

He said later: "We all know that this is an iconic franchise that has won four Super Bowls and other world championships. That is the brand. That is the brand."

OXNARD, Calif. -- Even though Ezekiel Elliott is not at training camp, the Dallas Cowboys' goal is to sign the two-time NFL rushing champion to a long-term deal along with quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver Amari Cooper.

The order of who signs does not matter to executive vice president Stephen Jones, who heads up the team's negotiations. Jones said there are planned negotiations between the representatives for the players, either face-to-face or over the phone, while the team is in California.

"Certainly we'll be working on it behind the scenes and we feel optimistic that when we're all said and done here that things will usually work themselves out," Jones said during the state-of-the-Cowboys news conference in Oxnard, California, on Friday.

Elliott's absence does not help the process, but the Cowboys view the running back's absence more as a hiccup than something that will become protracted.

"Zeke is an outstanding player. I don't want to seem cavalier about it, but I also don't want to be unrealistic being alarmed about it. This is what we do. This is the air we breathe," owner and general manager Jerry Jones said. "And if you flared and knee-jerked ... just because you have parts of it that need addressing, you wouldn't be able to manage. You wouldn't be functioning."

The Cowboys have had talks with the representatives for all three players, including within the last week with Elliott's. In the spring, they traded proposals with the agent for Prescott.

"All three have solid offers in front of them," Stephen Jones said.

But not solid enough to get deals done yet.

Prescott, who is set to make $2.02 million in the final year of his rookie deal, is looking at a substantial raise. The Philadelphia Eagles signed Carson Wentz to a four-year extension worth $128 million in the offseason that included $107 million in guarantees.

"You'd love to get a deal done that he's happy with that the team can work with to surround him with great players on offense and to have a great defense and special teams," Stephen Jones said. "If we can get all of that done, then we've done well. Who's to say exactly what that number is today or the length or what plays into that, but that would be the goal."

New Orleans' Michael Thomas and Atlanta's Julio Jones are in negotiations with their teams regarding long-term contracts, which Stephen Jones said could affect the talks with Cooper, whom the Cowboys acquired in a trade at midseason in 2018 for a first-round pick from the Oakland Raiders. Cooper is set to make $13.8 million on the fifth-year option of his rookie deal.

"Obviously some guys do want to see the full market play out before they make a decision," Jones said. "Could that be one of the reasons there's not necessarily a lot of urgency to get the deal done yet? It very well could be. But for me, no. We could do the deal tomorrow and we feel comfortable doing something."

Unlike Prescott and Cooper, Elliott is under contract through 2020 with the Cowboys picking up his $9.09 million fifth-year option in the spring. The Los Angeles Rams signed Todd Gurley to a four-year extension that included $45 million in guaranteed money last season, prior to his fourth year, and Jones said at the scouting combine in February that the Gurley deal would be the starting point for a new contract.

Fitting it together is a challenge but not impossible.

The Cowboys have roughly $24 million in cap room at the moment, according to ESPN Stats & Information. They are well budgeted for 2020 as well, but Stephen Jones said the lack of a collective bargaining agreement beyond 2020 plays a role because of rules involving contract structure.

"We are pretty good at it of where you are going to be projecting down the way," Jerry Jones said. "One thing we know how to do is figure. We can figure and we can anticipate what the cap is going to be and what the revenues are going to be and what's going to be available."

In April, the Cowboys signed Pro Bowl defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence to a five-year, $101 million deal that included $65 million in guaranteed money. They know they will have to make Cooper, Prescott and Elliott among the highest-paid players at their positions, but they want to be smart.

"I think these guys want to be here. They want to get it done, but they also want to be diligent. It's a big deal," Stephen Jones said. "You all know what a second contract means to these guys. It's a big one for them, and it usually is the big one for most of them. Not necessarily for quarterbacks. But for most guys that second contract is big and they want to get it right, and of course, we want to get it right too."

New Orleans Pelicans guard JJ Redick told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on Friday that he won't accept the invitation to join the depleted USA Basketball roster for the FIBA World Cup in September.

Redick, who spent the past two seasons in Philadelphia, said Thursday he was eager to be a part of USA Basketball's training camp, tour and World Cup in China, but he said he was weighing his family's offseason transition to a new city in his decision to make the six-week offseason commitment.

The Team USA training camp starts Aug. 5 in Las Vegas.

USA Basketball has lost multiple top players for the FIBA World Cup, including several guards -- James Harden, Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum and Eric Gordon. Kyle Lowry wants to play but is rehabilitating after surgery on his left thumb.

Only a few minutes into his introductory news conference, Russell Westbrook said something Friday that would've caused a collective spit take around the NBA just a few weeks ago.

"I only care about one team," Westbrook said, "and that's the Houston Rockets."

After spending his first 11 seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Westbrook officially embarked on a new chapter Friday. It was a somewhat surreal image, Westbrook dressed in Rockets colors with general manager Daryl Morey sitting to his right.

"To get something great, you've got to give up something great," Morey said.

The Rockets traded Chris Paul and future draft compensation to Oklahoma City on July 11, reuniting Westbrook with former Thunder teammate James Harden.

"We've been friends for many, many years," Westbrook said of Harden. "Since I was 10, actually. So we've played with each other in Oklahoma City, and to be able to win something, you've got to be willing to sacrifice some parts of your game, and we both understand that.

"We both understand that we have one common goal and that's to win a championship. We understand what we have to do. I'm not worried about it, and I know James isn't worried about it. I can play off the ball; I don't have to touch the ball to impact the game. That's the best way for me to come in and impact this team. I can do other things on the floor to make sure we have a better chance to win."

Westbrook and Harden played together for three seasons in Oklahoma City, culminating in 2012. Harden, who won the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year Award that season, was traded to the Rockets before the beginning of the 2012-13 campaign. Westbrook was already an All-Star at the time, but both players established themselves as franchise players, winning MVPs and making NBA history along the way.

Westbrook and Harden share confidence about making the pairing work in Houston because of their familiarity with each other, but they were significantly different players when they last were teammates.

"I'll fit right in, personally," Westbrook said. "Floor spread, it gives me the opportunity to attack, penetrate, kick. Defensively, it'll give me an opportunity to switch and guard and rebound at a high level. Push the break, get us out on the break. A lot of different things.

"I think the style of play is great, something I'm looking forward to, just getting out in space in the open floor, shooters all around and playing that way."

Westbrook and Harden are two of the most ball-dominant players in NBA history. Both primarily have handled the ball and dictated offense for their teams while also affecting the game with scoring and rebounding. Westbrook has won two scoring titles and led the league in assists the past two seasons; Harden has won the past two scoring titles, last season averaging 36.1 points per game.

"The biggest strength, I think, of Coach [Mike] D'Antoni and his staff is taking what guys are good at and putting them in ways to succeed, but not saying that they need to change, but figuring out how to utilize their strengths," Morey said. "That's what Mike's done better than any coach I've ever worked with. When you've got two MVPs, it's a lot to work with."

The trade sending Westbrook to Houston came together quickly and was a direct ripple effect of Paul George requesting a trade from the Thunder a few days into free agency and joining Kawhi Leonard with the LA Clippers.

After the Thunder moved George, they accelerated conversations with Westbrook about his future with the franchise, and both sides agreed that the best outcome was a trade this summer. Houston was the primary desired destination for Westbrook, mainly because of Harden, who played a part in advocating for the deal.

"James is persistent if he wants something done, and we had conversations and we always talked throughout the season, so it was definitely a process, an easy process for me," Westbrook said. "Not a hard decision at all."

Morey laughed when Westbrook mentioned Harden's persistence.

"You guys said it came together quickly, but it didn't happen quick enough for James," Morey said.

Westbrook had been seen as a likely lifer in OKC, especially after pledging his loyalty following the 2016 departure of Kevin Durant to the Golden State Warriors. Westbrook signed an extension that summer to provide stability to the franchise, and then he re-signed a new five-year supermax extension the next summer, planting his flag seemingly for the long term.

Westbrook and the Thunder had engaged in conversations about his future after the 2018-19 season, with an understanding that a change may be necessary at some point -- though the expectation was that the talk would be tabled until at least after 2019-20.

But with circumstances changing, Westbrook and the Thunder were both ready to move on.

"It's tough," Westbrook said. "It's something that will stay with me the rest of my life. Because I basically grew up there, in Oklahoma City. Eighteen years old in Oklahoma City and the people, the organization, never done me wrong. They always stood up for me and my family -- always had my back -- and I'm very, very grateful and I don't take that for granted.

"Like I said, Sam and Mr. [Clay] Bennett [OKC's owner], Coach [Scott] Brooks, Coach [Billy] Donovan, the whole staff, everybody over there always had my best interests, and I can't do nothing but be thankful and grateful for what they did for me and my family."

The Westbrook-Rockets partnership is ironic, since he has been ridiculed and despised by the Houston fan base perhaps more than any other. Westbrook and Harden went head-to-head in 2016-17 for the MVP award, with Morey loudly campaigning for Harden and against Westbrook.

On Friday, however, in a nearly 20-minute opening news conference, Westbrook flashed his trademark charm, affirmed his commitment to play hard every night and spoke openly about the desire to win a championship.

But there was one more thing he wanted his new fans to know.

"That I'm a nice guy," Westbrook said with a smile. "Obviously when I play the game, I'm going out to compete. I'm going out to win. And I don't care how that looks."

Travis Shaw has been recalled from Triple-A San Antonio and is playing first base Friday night for the Milwaukee Brewers as they take on the visiting Chicago Cubs.

The onetime slugger was sent down in June after hitting .164 with six homers and 13 RBIs in 57 games.

Shaw had averaged 32 homers and 94 RBIs in his first two seasons in Milwaukee, after coming over from the Boston Red Sox in a trade for Tyler Thornburg.

He seemed to find his swing in San Antonio. In 28 games, Shaw hit .286 with nine homers and 22 RBIs with an OPS of 1.039.

Shaw, used mostly as a third baseman in his first two seasons with the Brewers, has split time between first and third in San Antonio.

The roster spot opened when the Brewers put right-hander Jhoulys Chacín on the injured list with a right oblique strain.