BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Kevin Thomas Jr. turned in a dominant performance in winning Friday night’s Larry Rice Classic USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car feature at Bloomington Speedway.

Religiously trekking around the quarter-mile on the top in turns one and two, and on the bottom of turns three and four, Thomas ventured down low on a late restart with six laps remaining, losing the lead to Brady Bacon in the process, then raced his way back to the front past Bacon with three laps remaining to become the first multi-time winner with the series this season.

With a pair of victories under his hat in just four appearances (Ocala & Bloomington), it’s marked a sea change of confidence and expectations for the driver of the KT Motorsports/Dr. Pepper – McDonald’s – KT Construction Services/DRC/Speedway Chevy.

“It’s very important, for me especially,” Thomas noted. “It’s one of those things. I got to get rolling and I’ve got to have that confidence that I’ve not had for the last couple years. (Crew chief) Davey (Jones) brings that to me. He’s kind of my safety blanket, and Jason (McDougal) and A.J. (Parker) as well. They got my season turned around last year in a pretty swift manner, so I have a lot of trust in those guys.”

Thomas’ triumph was the fourth of his USAC Sprint Car career at Bloomington, which made him the second winningest driver of all-time with the series at the track, trailing only Bryan Clauson’s five. In fact, the very first of Thomas’ 29 career series wins came at Bloomington in 2012.

Thomas started on the outside of the front row, yet it was polesitter Shane Cottle who got to the point initially. Cottle led the opening lap before Thomas swiftly drove around the outside of Cottle in turns one two, nipping Cottle at the line at the conclusion of lap two.

Thomas raced around the circumference of Cottle in turns one and two on the third circuit, then made a beeline for the bottom of turn three, stealing Cottle’s line and would remain on the same path for much of the remainder of the race.

While the majority of the 24-car driver lineup was deciphering whether to find traction high or low, Bacon had another idea to cut through the middle, slicing his way up to the second position and would continually press the issue with Thomas for the balance of the joust.

Bacon went on the offensive, riding the high line all the way around while Thomas swapped from high to low as he navigated each end of the racing surface. Bacon was able to stay within reach, but Thomas was “steady as he goes” on his current course.

However, with six laps remaining, 20th running Sterling Cling was uninjured after riding out a series of barrel rolls off the edge of the turn four banking. He walked away uninjured.

“When we stopped there for that red, in one and two, I was like, ‘there’s a lot of moisture down here,’” Thomas recalled. “I know I was getting through one and two well, but I didn’t know if it was going to hold up. I knew it was getting thin off two. I was hanging a little bit, so I changed my line.”

After one lap following the restart, Thomas darted back to the high line in turns one and two, but that opened the door for Bacon to stick a foot into as he dove into turn one and slid up in front of Thomas in turn two to snare the lead.

“It’s a line I hadn’t been running,” Thomas explained. “I went down there, clipped the infield tire, got really tight and gave the lead up to Brady, and I just had to really work for it and focus on hitting my marks and doing what I was doing for the other 20 some odd laps. I don’t know if that was the right thing to do but we did still end up winning the race. That’s a lot to do with the racecar. It went wherever I wanted it to go. I just had to not screw up.”

With three laps to go, Bacon left the bottom open and Thomas nailed it to regain the lead.

Onward Thomas went unchallenged for the remaining two trips around as he locked up a 1.479 sec. margin victory over Bacon, Kyle Cummins, Cottle and Chris Windom.

A frightening incident at the finish line on the final lap saw Carson Garrett (13th) and Mario Clouser (14th) make wheel-to-wheel contact which sending Garrett careening nose first into the front straightaway wall before flipping over. Garrett climbed from the racecar under his own power but was later transferred to a local hospital for further observation.

Perhaps the most incredible of all longevity streaks in the history of USAC National Sprint Car racing came to an end Friday night at Bloomington when Chase Stockon finished 10th in the semi-feature, coming up shy of a transfer spot to the feature event. Although the team did have a provisional starting position available, they elected not to utilize it.

Thus, Stockon’s all-time record streak of 324 consecutive feature starts in USAC National Sprint Car competition was over, a record which dated back to every series race run since 2012.

To see full results, turn to the next page.

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — Kyle Larson blasted around Lance Dewease on lap nine and won Friday night’s Tommy Hinnershitz Classic at Williams Grove Speedway.

From the outset, the legendary Dewease seemed on his way to win No. 100 at the track. But when Dewease happened to try the bottom navigating lapped traffic, Larson roared into the night.

On an evening where the Pennsylvania Posse faced its first true test of the year against the All Star Circuit of Champions, Larson stole the show and raced to victory.

The driver of the Hendrick Motorsports No. 5 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Cup Series pocketed the $6,000 winner’s purse in his first sprint car race of the year.

It’s Larson’s third win at Williams Grove Speedway in his past seven starts. Before last year, Larson went nearly a decade without a win at the tricky half-mile. Now, two of those recent victories have come against the track’s winningest driver, Dewease, who finished second, 2.707 seconds back.

“I used to hate this place, to be honest. … Now, I love it,” Larson said. “Once I came here with [car owner] Paul [Silva], I don’t think I’ve finished outside the top three or four. … I feel like I charge the corner hard enough that I can pass people fairly easily, especially when you get to traffic.

“I know he’s going to win No. 100 here in the next few weeks,” Larson added. “It’s cool to beat him for pride’s sake, I guess. I don’t want to be here when he wins No. 100. I want to watch it from home and not be here. I put pressure on myself to beat him. Like I said, he’s the best, I think, there’s ever been in central Pennsylvania.”

It marked Larson’s fifth overall win of the year. Two of those wins are in a midget, highlighted by the Chili Bowl Nationals in January. His other victories are with the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series at All-Tech Raceway and NASCAR Cup Series at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Larson’s growing fondness of Williams Grove and his energetic driving style shined Friday.

Larson started the night second in time trials with a lap of 16.515 seconds, .199 seconds off Dewease’s quick time mark. In the dash, he started fourth, but a series of opportunistic moves sprung him to the win and ultimately on the outside of the front row of the 30-lap feature.

Dewease established footing early, then a lap-three red flag for T.J. Stutts changed the complexion. On the restart, Dewease reestablished a nice lead, beating Larson off turn four in the early going.

“Definitely a little rusty to start,” Larson said. “I just had to remember how to handle traffic.”

Then lapped traffic came, and Dewease’s 1.5-second advantage quickly vanished. Larson had closed in, and Dewease knew he was in trouble.

“After that red [flag] we were no good,” Dewease said. “I don’t know what happened to it. We’ll figure it out. Against [Larson] you can’t be half ass. We weren’t very good after that red [flag]. I might have come down [the track] a little too soon after that lapped car but I can say he was better than us.”

Dewease failed to find comfortability on a track that changed faster than what he could adapt to or envisioned, opening the door for Larson to drive by on the top without much resistance.

“It kind of shocked us how much [the track] changed,” Dewease said. “I don’t know. I think we got off guard.”

A caution on lap 10 for Robbie Kendall stacked things back and set up the final 20-lap green flag run. Larson built a two-second lead shortly after, but that was cut to just three cars once he reentered traffic.

Larson soon pushed the lead back to over a second, taking advantage of a car that could work most of the racetrack while Dewease and company couldn’t keep up.

“My car could move around, run the middle, run a lane off the bottom if I needed to, and rip the top really good,” said Larson, who will continue his busy weekend today in Kevin Rumley’s late model at Hagerstown Speedway. “In turns three and four, I could rip it good, but get tight off exit sometimes and had to be off it. … Overall, it was good.”

Freddie Rahmer finished third, while Ian Madsen and Anthony Macri completed the top five.

The finish:

Feature (30 laps): 1. 57-Kyle Larson [2]; 2. 69K-Lance Dewease [1]; 3. 51-Freddie Rahmer [3]; 4. 11-Ian Madsen [4]; 5. 39M-Anthony Macri [5]; 6. 14-Tony Stewart [8]; 7. 72-Tim Shaffer [6]; 8. 24-Kerry Madsen [7]; 9. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [9]; 10. 23-Paul McMahan [11]; 11. 10-Zeb Wise [10]; 12. 13-Justin Peck [17]; 13. 5-Brent Marks [24]; 14. 26-Cory Eliason [16]; 15. 91-Kyle Reinhardt [13]; 16. 35H-Zach Hampton [12]; 17. 5C-Dylan Cisney [15]; 18. 39-Chase Dietz [27]; 19. 17-Steve Buckwalter [19]; 20. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [20]; 21. O7-Lucas Wolfe [14]; 22. 11T-TJ Stutts [25]; 23. 12-Brent Shearer [21]; 24. 4-Cap Henry [23]; 25. 8M-TJ Michael [26]; 26. 17B-Bill Balog [22]; 27. 48-Danny Dietrich [28]; 28. 55K-Robbie Kendall [18]

Assistant coach Joel Johnson is taking over the United States women's national hockey team after Bob Corkum abruptly stepped down less than three weeks before the world championships open in Canada.

USA Hockey's director of women's national team programs Katie Million did not provide a reason for Corkum's departure in announcing the move Friday night.

Corkum reached his decision earlier in the day as he and players gathered in Maine for the start of training camp on Saturday in preparation for the world championships in Nova Scotia, which run May 6-16.

"Bob put his heart and and soul into continuing to build on the legacy of our women's national team program over the past three seasons, and we're grateful for all he did," Million said in a statement released by USA Hockey. "While he's stepping away, he'll always be a big part of the USA Hockey family and we'll certainly miss him."

Corkum is a former NHL player and assistant coach who coached the U.S. team to win its fifth consecutive world title in 2019. The tournament was canceled last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Johnson served as Corkum's assistant and previously coached the U.S. Under-18 and Under-22 teams. He is currently the associate coach and completed his 16th season with the University of Minnesota's women's team.

"We are extremely fortunate to have someone like Joel to step in and guide our team," Million said. "He's been an important part of our program and is well-positioned to help build on the success we've enjoyed."

Saturday brings us an 11-game slate in the NHL, and it's a schedule that will have hockey fans reminiscing about all-day hockey from the opening rounds of the 2020 postseason. The puck drops for our first games at 12:30 p.m. ET (New York Rangers vs. New Jersey Devils and Washington Capitals vs. Philadelphia Flyers), and closes out with a pair at 8 p.m. ET (San Jose Sharks vs. Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Dallas Stars).

But perhaps the most anticipated Saturday showdown finds the Tampa Bay Lightning hosting the Florida Panthers in the latest renewal of the Battle of Florida. Both teams sit in strong playoff position in the Central Division, and are locked in a race with the Carolina Hurricanes to determine who will get the top seed heading into next month's postseason.

The most recent matchup saw the Lightning win in overtime, 3-2, and they lead the season series by the same margin. Tonight's game promises to be another tantalizing affair, and streams live on ESPN+.

As we enter the final stretch of the regular season, it's time to check in on all the playoff races -- along with the teams jockeying for position in the 2021 NHL draft lottery.

Note: Playoff chances are via Money Puck. Tragic numbers are courtesy of Damian Echevarrieta of the NHL.

East Division

Washington Capitals

Points: 60
Regulation wins: 23
Playoff position: E1
Games left: 12
Next game: @ PHI (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 93.9%
Tragic number: N/A

New York Islanders

Points: 58
Regulation wins: 20
Playoff position: E2
Games left: 12
Next game: @ PHI (Apr. 18)
Playoff chances: 94%
Tragic number: N/A

Pittsburgh Penguins

Points: 57
Regulation wins: 20
Playoff position: E3
Games left: 13
Next game: @ BUF (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 98.4%
Tragic number: N/A

Boston Bruins

Points: 54
Regulation wins: 17
Playoff position: E4
Games left: 14
Next game: vs. WSH (Apr, 18)
Playoff chances: 89.8%
Tragic number: N/A

New York Rangers

Points: 48
Regulation wins: 18
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 13
Next game: vs. NJ (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 20.7%
Tragic number: 21

Philadelphia Flyers

Points: 46
Regulation wins: 13
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 13
Next game: vs. WSH (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 3.2%
Tragic number: 18

New Jersey Devils

Points: 34
Regulation wins: 11
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 14
Next game: @ NYR (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: 8

Buffalo Sabres

Points: 29
Regulation wins: 8
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 13
Next game: vs. PIT (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: 1

Central Division

Carolina Hurricanes

Points: 60
Regulation wins: 20
Playoff position: C1
Games left: 14
Next game: vs. NSH (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Tampa Bay Lightning

Points: 60
Regulation wins: 24
Playoff position: C2
Games left: 13
Next game: vs. FLA (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Florida Panthers

Points: 59
Regulation wins: 19
Playoff position: C3
Games left: 12
Next game: @ TB (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A

Nashville Predators

Points: 49
Regulation wins: 16
Playoff position: C4
Games left: 11
Next game: @ CAR (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 55.1%
Tragic number: N/A

Chicago Blackhawks

Points: 45
Regulation wins: 13
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 12
Next game: @ DET (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 6.6%
Tragic number: 20

Dallas Stars

Points: 44
Regulation wins: 14
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 14
Next game: vs. CBJ (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 38.4%
Tragic number: 23

Columbus Blue Jackets

Points: 39
Regulation wins: 11
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 11
Next game: @ DAL (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: 12

Detroit Red Wings

Points: 38
Regulation wins: 14
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 11
Next game: vs. CHI (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: 11

North Division

Toronto Maple Leafs

Points: 60
Regulation wins: 22
Playoff position: N1
Games left: 12
Next game: @ VAN (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Winnipeg Jets

Points: 57
Regulation wins: 21
Playoff position: N2
Games left: 12
Next game: vs. EDM (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A

Edmonton Oilers

Points: 52
Regulation wins: 23
Playoff position: N3
Games left: 14
Next game: @ WPG (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 97.2%
Tragic number: N/A

Montreal Canadiens

Points: 47
Regulation wins: 17
Playoff position: N4
Games left: 15
Next game: vs. CGY (Apr. 16)
Playoff chances: 85.1%
Tragic number: N/A

Calgary Flames

Points: 41
Regulation wins: 16
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 12
Next game: @ MTL (Apr. 16)
Playoff chances: 14.6%
Tragic number: 18

Vancouver Canucks

Points: 35
Regulation wins: 11
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 19
Next game: vs. TOR (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 3.1%
Tragic number: 26

Ottawa Senators

Points: 32
Regulation wins: 10
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 12
Next game: @ MTL (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: 9

West Division

Colorado Avalanche

Points: 64
Regulation wins: 27
Playoff position: W1
Games left: 13
Next game: @ STL (Apr. 22)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Vegas Golden Knights

Points: 62
Regulation wins: 24
Playoff position: W2
Games left: 13
Next game: @ ANA (Apr. 18)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Minnesota Wild

Points: 55
Regulation wins: 21
Playoff position: W3
Games left: 14
Next game: vs. SJ (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A

St. Louis Blues

Points: 44
Regulation wins: 13
Playoff position: W4
Games left: 14
Next game: @ ARI (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 42.3%
Tragic number: N/A

Arizona Coyotes

Points: 43
Regulation wins: 15
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 12
Next game: vs. STL (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 34.6%
Tragic number: 24

San Jose Sharks

Points: 40
Regulation wins: 12
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 13
Next game: @ MIN (Apr. 17)
Playoff chances: 13.9%
Tragic number: 22

Los Angeles Kings

Points: 38
Regulation wins: 14
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 14
Next game: vs. ANA (Apr. 20)
Playoff chances: 9%
Tragic number: 23

Anaheim Ducks

Points: 35
Regulation wins: 9
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 11
Next game: vs. VGS (Apr. 18)
Playoff chances: 0.2%
Tragic number: 13

Race for the No. 1 pick

The NHL uses a draft lottery to determine the order at the top of the first round, so the team that finishes in last place is not guaranteed the No. 1 selection. New for 2021, a team may move up a maximum of 10 spots if it wins the lottery, so only 11 teams are eligible for the draw for the No. 1 pick. Full details on the process can be found here.

1. Buffalo Sabres

Points: 29
Regulation wins: 8

2. Ottawa Senators

Points: 32
Regulation wins: 10

3. New Jersey Devils

Points: 34
Regulation wins: 11

4. Anaheim Ducks

Points: 35
Regulation wins: 9

5. Vancouver Canucks

Points: 35
Regulation wins: 11

6. Detroit Red Wings

Points: 38
Regulation wins: 14

7. Los Angeles Kings

Points: 38
Regulation wins: 14

8. Columbus Blue Jackets

Points: 39
Regulation wins: 11

9. San Jose Sharks

Points: 40
Regulation wins: 12

10. Calgary Flames

Points: 41
Regulation wins: 16

11. Arizona Coyotes

Points: 43
Regulation wins: 15

12. Dallas Stars

Points: 44
Regulation wins: 14

13. Chicago Blackhawks

Points: 45
Regulation wins: 13

14. Philadelphia Flyers

Points: 46
Regulation wins: 13

15. New York Rangers

Points: 48
Regulation wins: 18

Pakistan's cricket players will get visas to compete in the upcoming T20 World Cup in India this October, the BCCI's apex council has been told by the board secretary Jay Shah following "government assurances".

Shah spoke to the council in a video conference meeting held on Friday, where it was also decided that the mega-event will be staged across nine venues, with Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium hosting the final. The other venues are Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Dharamsala and Lucknow.

"The visa issue of Pakistan cricket team has been sorted. However, whether the fans can travel across the border to watch matches is still not clear," a council member told PTI.

"It will be decided in due course of time. However, we had promised ICC that it will be sorted. The secretary announced during the meeting."

India and Pakistan have not played bilateral cricket for close to a decade now due to diplomatic tensions between the two countries; Pakistan last toured the country for a bilateral series in 2012.

The Sunrisers Hyderabad haven't made the best of starts to the season, losing their opening two games while chasing at Chepauk. They will have their task cut out to avoid a third successive loss, as they are likely to once again be without their key batter Kane Williamson when they take on Mumbai Indians, the five-time champions. In Williamson's absence, the Sunrisers will be hoping that Rashid Khan steps up; his economy of 5.20 against Mumbai Indians is the second-best by a bowler against a single opposition.

Mumbai, who have won the last two editions of the IPL, will come into this match having pulled off a heist against Kolkata Knight Riders to sneak a 10-run win. Considering the assistance for spin on offer at the Chepauk pitch, Mumbai might be tempted to hand Jayant Yadav his first game of the season to counter the threat of David Warner, the only left-hand batter in the Sunrisers line-up.

Mumbai Indians vs Sunrisers Hyderabad is available to view in India on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV and Airtel TV.

When does the MI vs SRH live streaming start?
The MI vs SRH live streaming will start at 7:00 PM India Time on April 17, 2021.

Where is the MI vs SRH match being played?
The MI vs SRH match will be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

On which TV channels will MI vs SRH live coverage be available?
In India, Star Sports 1 and 1HD, Star Sports Select 1 and 1HD and SS1 Hindi and 1 Hindi HD will telecast the match live.

Where can one find MI vs SRH live score and commentary online?
The fastest and most comprehensive live score and details will be available here: MI vs SRH live score.

What are the likely playing XIs for today's MI vs SRH game?
Mumbai Indians: 1 Rohit Sharma (capt) 2 Quinton de Kock (wk), 3 Suryakumar Yadav, 4 Ishan Kishan, 5 Hardik Pandya, 6 Kieron Pollard, 7 Krunal Pandya, 8 Rahul Chahar, 9 Marco Jansen/Jayant Yadav, 10 Trent Boult, 11 Jasprit Bumrah

Sunrisers Hyderabad: 1 David Warner (capt), 2. Jonny Bairstow (wk), 3 Manish Pandey, 4 Vijay Shankar, 5 Kedar Jadhav, 6 Rashid Khan, 7 Jason Holder, 8 Abdul Samad, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Shahbaz Nadeem, 11 T Natarajan

Who are the captains for today's MI vs SRH game?
The captains for today's game will be Rohit Sharma (MI) and David Warner (SRH).

Who are the umpires for MI vs SRH game?
The on-field umpires for today's game will be Chris Gaffaney and K Srinivasan. The third umpire will be KN Ananthapadmanabhan.

Who will be the match referee for MI vs SRH game?
The match referee for today's game will be Sunil Chaturvedi.

New South Wales 143 and 5 for 140 (Bartlett 3-31) trail Queensland 389 (Labuschagne 192, Abbott 4-71) by 106 runs

Queensland were on the brink of claiming the Sheffield Shield after another dominant display left New South Wales struggling to avoid an innings defeat.

Whereas in the first innings it was nine wickets between Michael Neser and Jack Wildermuth that dismantled the visitors, this time it was Xavier Bartlett and Brendan Doggett who shared the five wickets to fall - including four in the final session as it briefly looked as though Queensland could wrap things up on the third evening before bad light intervened.

They had earlier extended their first innings to 246 with Marnus Labuschagne finally departing for 192 off 353 balls - eight short of his second double century. At 351 for 4, Queensland might have wanted an even greater advantage but New South Wales were finally able to get some reward for their toil as the last six wickets fell for 38. The next-highest score after Labuschagne was Bryce Street's 46.

New South Wales' second innings started positively as Daniel Hughes and Matthew Gilkes added 64 in 16 overs before a brilliant catch by Usman Khawaja at the second of two gullies intercepted Hughes' drive and provided Queensland their opening.

Doggett struck in quick succession after tea when Kurtis Patterson's poor season ended with a booming drive edged to first slip and Gilkes was squared up, the edge carrying to Joe Burns who was stationed close at second slip to counter the slowness of the pitch.

Bartlett then made inroads in consecutive overs as he won lbw appeals against Jason Sangha and Jack Edwards who were both caught on the crease by full deliveries that shaped back in.

At that point New South Wales were 121 for 5 with 20 overs remaining but Sean Abbott and Baxter Holt survived until the early close, although it was a close-run thing for Holt who was beaten by ripping leg-breaks from Mitchell Swepson.

Queensland had resumed on 286 for 3 and Matt Renshaw departed relatively early when he inside-edged a drive into his stumps off Trent Copeland.

Labuschagne, who had been 160 overnight, was the quiet partner in a fifth-wicket stand of 52 with Jimmy Peirson who struck eight boundaries in his 46.

However, when Peirson edged Lyon to slip the innings rather lost its way - although all things are relative. Wildermuth nicked a good delivery from Abbott and Neser got an inside edge to short leg before Labuschagne's nine-and-a-half hour marathon ended when he late cut into the hands of a wide slip. His career-best remained the 215 against New Zealand at the SCG last year.

Abbott was reward for an extended spell with the last two wickets as he finished with four (and the biggest workload of the quicks) but while it stopped the lead being as hefty as it might have been the task of rescuing the game, beyond a miracle, was too much for New South Wales.

Matt Parkinson, the Lancashire legspinner, became a social-media star on Friday after bowling a ball-of-the-century contender to Northamptonshire's Adam Rossington in a County Championship fixture at Old Trafford, the delivery evoking memories of Shane Warne's dismissal of Mike Gatting at the same ground in 1993.

It didn't take long for the split-screen comparison to emerge...

... or for the plaudits to start flooding in.

By Saturday morning, Warne himself had given it his seal of approval.

Parkinson had come into the game following a frustrating winter, spending three months in England's bio-secure bubbles in Sri Lanka and India without getting on to the field.

He said that he wanted to "prove a point" after missing out on selection for Lancashire's first game of the season, and that after being hit for a couple of boundaries by Simon Kerrigan, his former team-mate, he had thought: "Sack it, I'm going to try and rip it."

Needless to say, it was a plan that worked pretty well.

Big picture

In the blue corner, we have Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant and others. In the red, there are KL Rahul, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran and friends. The Delhi Capitals' contest against the Punjab Kings is of the kind where, were it a boxing match, there would be the promise of some heavy-duty action in the first few rounds, with the possibility of a peter-out later on.

That's because of how the two teams are made up. Both rely on their top orders to do the bulk of the work, and if the top order falters, then the batting goes from sizzle to fizzle pretty quickly. There are other points in common too: they are stocked with lots of pace options, and each has won one game and lost one. However, while the Capitals might look back at their defeat against the Rajasthan Royals and think they could have won two in two, the Kings would need to pick themselves up after a rather comprehensive wipe-out against the Chennai Super Kings.

This will be the last outing at the Wankhede Stadium for the two teams in IPL 2021. The tracks there have not lived up to the reputation of being batting beauties in the last couple of matches, but given a flat track, there are bound to be fireworks.

What both teams might look for, though, is a bit more batting depth. Each faced a top-order collapse in their last games, which would have made them conscious of how steeply the batting falls off after the top few. While Pant being around allowed the Capitals to at least hit near 150, none of the top five stayed much beyond the powerplay for the Kings, and it needed Shahrukh Khan at No. 6 to drag them just over 100. They both have the personnel in their squads to lengthen the batting, though that would inevitably come at the expense of the bowling, and it's a balancing call they have to take. The Capitals could drop one of their overseas bowlers to bring back Shimron Hetmyer, while the Kings could do the same to bring in a Fabian Allen or a Moises Henriques.

In the news

Anrich Nortje, bowler of the fastest ball in IPL history, is back in the Capitals' team bubble after a Covid-19 scare. Nortje had landed in Mumbai on April 6, and had to spend extended time in quarantine after a positive test, but has subsequently tested negative thrice. The Capitals certainly missed Nortje in their loss against the Royals, and he can now resume his partnership with Kagiso Rabada to provide the pace blast they had last year. Nortje's addition would almost certainly mean a benching for Tom Curran, who hasn't been able to control the flow of runs effectively.

The Capitals have also roped in Shams Mulani as a temporary replacement for Axar Patel, a like-for-like left-arm-spinning allrounder, and brought in Aniruddha Joshi for the injured Shreyas Iyer. It remains to be seen whether either of them can be fitted into the XIs.

Likely XIs

Delhi Capitals: 1 Prithvi Shaw, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Ajinkya Rahane, 4 Rishabh Pant (capt, wk), 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Shimron Hetmyer, 7 Lalit Yadav, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Avesh Khan, 11 Anrich Nortje

Sunrisers Hyderabad: 1 Mayank Agarwal, 2 KL Rahul (capt, wk), 3 Chris Gayle, 4 Deepak Hooda, 5 Nicholas Pooran, 6 Shahrukh Khan, 7 Jhye Richardson, 8 M Ashwin, 9 Mohammed Shami, 10 Riley Meredith, 11 Arshdeep Singh

Strategy punt

• The Capitals didn't use up all of R Ashwin's four overs in their defeat against the Royals, something that coach Ricky Ponting admitted might have been a mistake. They would not want to repeat that in this game, with Ashwin likely to be particularly valuable in the middle, bowling to Gayle and Pooran, both left-handers. Both big-hitting West Indians have not quite managed to get on top of Ashwin. While the offspinner has a long history of success against Gayle and has even kept him to less than a run-a-ball, he bowled superbly to Pooran in IPL 2020's opening game too, getting him for a duck.
• With Pooran having fallen twice to short balls in IPL 2021 and yet to score a run, expect Delhi to unleash their considerable pace artillery at him too. For the Kings then, a good start is essential. The Capitals might want to have both Ashwin and a pacer bowling to Pooran, but if Rahul, Agarwal and Gayle can get the team off to a good start, then those plans will come unstuck. And while Pooran may have started off with two ducks, he remains amongst the best hitters of the ball, who can cause mayhem when coming in with a set platform.

Stats that matter

• In five IPL games at the Wankhede, Pant has averaged 63.66 at a strike rate of 192.92. Even including games other than the IPL, Pant has enjoyed himself at this venue, averaging 41.83 at a strike rate of 180.57 in nine matches.
• Since January 2018, only one batter has scored more than 2000 runs in the IPL: Rahul. He's done it at an average of 54.54, while the strike rate has veered sharply between extremes in past seasons. It remains to be seen which version of Rahul turns up. While the aggressive version worked wonders in the win against the Royals, the collapse against the Super Kings might make him change tack.

Saurabh Somani is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo

The attorney representing De'Vincent Spriggs, the man who accused Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald of assault earlier this week, is now offering an apology to Donald on behalf of his client.

Attorney Todd J. Hollis told Pittsburgh television station KDKA on Friday evening that Spriggs mistook his attacker outside a Pittsburgh-area nightclub for Donald.

The apology comes on the same day when an attorney hired by Donald refuted Spriggs' claim that Donald was involved in the assault. Casey White, Donald's attorney, told ESPN on Friday morning that Spriggs swung a bottle at Donald that grazed his head as he ducked, before other people surrounding Donald stepped in.

"As he ducks, somebody from behind grabs him to stop him from interacting with this guy, Mr. Spriggs, so he holds Aaron back in a sense," White said. "At that point, that's when other people come to Aaron's aid and defend him by removing, so to speak, Mr. Spriggs from the area where he is punched and he is fighting; it's a mutual fight at this point between other individuals who Aaron does not really know."

White said they have obtained at least five witness accounts and have others who have come forward willing to provide statements. White also said that video surveillance from the area did not show Donald assaulting Spriggs and that Donald eventually helped pull people away from Spriggs.

"Aaron actually runs over to [Spriggs'] aid and starts pulling people off of this guy," White said. "He's trying to get these kids off Spriggs. He gets at least two or three people off of Spriggs, and at that point in time, somebody grabs Aaron and says, 'This is not a good situation, let's get the heck out of here.'"

Hollis had filed a criminal complaint on behalf of Spriggs with Pittsburgh police on Wednesday, saying his client needed 16 stitches and suffered a broken orbital bone, a broken nose, a concussion and a sprained or broken arm.

The alleged attack occurred around 3 a.m. Sunday, Hollis said, and the attorney released a photo that showed Spriggs with facial injuries and swelling.

According to Hollis, Spriggs accidentally bumped into Donald and an incident ensued inside the nightclub that caused both parties to be asked to leave. White said Spriggs dug his elbow into Donald's back, which Donald initially brushed off, thinking it likely was someone he knew.

"He turned around, and it's this Mr. Spriggs ... and Aaron goes, 'What's up?' and Mr. Spriggs starts yelling belligerently, 'Did I mean to? Did I mean to?' He keeps repeating. It's kind of nonsensical, but he keeps yelling, 'Did I mean to?' It's apparent to Aaron and it's apparent to all the witnesses that [Spriggs] is intoxicated," White said.

White said Spriggs was then escorted out of the establishment, which he described as "a private party in somebody's apartment" above a business-bar area. According to White, Donald and a colleague left the party shortly after, where they encountered Spriggs in the back alleyway off the exit.

Prior to the apology Friday, the Rams had previously released a statement saying they were aware of the reports regarding Donald, who is a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year and seven-time Pro Bowl selection with 85.5 career sacks.

Donald, 29, is a Pittsburgh native and was a star college player at Pitt, where he often trains during the offseason. The Rams selected Donald with the 13th overall pick in the 2014 draft. He is in the midst of a six-year, $135 million extension.