Australia captain Tim Paine confronted the match officials to question the consistency of their decision-making after his second innings caught-behind dismissal amid the home side's eight-wicket defeat in the second Test at the MCG.

Paine's irritation at being adjudged caught behind via Real-Time-Snicko (RTS) evidence was plain to all present on the third evening of the game, leading some commentators to question why it was possible for a batsman to have his not-out verdict overturned without any indication of a mark on the bat using infrared HotSpot cameras.

However ICC protocols have dictated for several years that the umpire is free to deduce an edge from Snicko evidence even if there is no HotSpot, something Paine was clearly aware of as he explained the exact reasons why he had sought further discussion about the third umpire Paul Wilson's decision, which the captain felt had been, among other things, too hastily made.

"I've spoken to them. It wasn't very productive. But I've spoken to them and raised my only concern," Paine said. "My concern yesterday was not with the technology, it was with the precedent that was set in the first innings with [Cheteshwar] Pujara and the fact I just think the decision was made too quickly.

"He didn't look at enough replays to see the full evidence, that there was probably a gap between bat and ball, the line itself had started before it went past my bat and it finished again. So there were just lots of things that didn't marry up for me. I saw some photos of it, all sorts of things, I just don't think he took the time to look at the evidence. The technology itself, I thought was okay."

There were plenty of moments for both sides to grit their teeth over during the course of another Test match where bowlers were in the ascendancy, not least a handful of instances in which India were denied lbw verdicts due to the vagaries of "umpire's call" for a ball not deemed to be hitting enough of the stumps according to ball-tracking. As for the Pujara incident, then, too, there was no mark on HotSpot and a very small spike on Snicko after Australia reviewed for a caught-behind, although on that occasion there was a suggestion the toe of Pujara's bat had clipped his pad.

Paine's episode clearly stuck in the craw of the hosts, as they had been scrambling for any sort of fourth-innings lead with which to pressure Ajinkya Rahane's ultimately victorious team.

"Extremely frustrating, no doubt about that. Crucial part of the game," Paine said. "Felt like I've been playing pretty well at the start of this series and I thought if I could get in a partnership with [Cameron] Greeny and add another 50 to 100 to 120 runs together then the whole game changes. So to have a finish like that was extremely disappointing, but it is what it is.

"I think that was pretty clear from my reaction and I thought we had a pretty similar example in the first innings with Pujara on the first ball of day two, which sets a precedent. Then it seemed to change."

Bowled out for 36. Missing three, arguably four, first-choice players. Losing another mid-Test. Spending months on the road and in mentally challenging bubbles. Losing the toss. Becoming only the third team to come back from a 0-1 deficit in the last 50 years in Australia. You might have accused India coach Ravi Shastri of hyperbole in the past, but you probably wouldn't argue against his assessment that India's win in Melbourne after all that is one of the great comebacks in Test history, not just Indian cricket.

"I think this will go down in the annals of Indian cricket - no, world cricket - as one of the great comebacks in the history of the game," Shastri said. "You know to be rolled over for 36 and then three days later to get up and be ready to punch was outstanding. The boys deserve all the credit for the character they have shown. Real character."

The key to this comeback, Shastri said, was to accept the result in Adelaide and move on. He was asked what the chat was in the dressing room in Adelaide and then in Melbourne when they rocked up.

"No chat," he said of Adelaide. "And when we arrived in Melbourne, it was the things we have got to do to get up and fight.

"We had a lot of positives in Adelaide but at the end of the day it is the result that counts. We were blown away in the second innings in one hour. So when you are blown away, you are blown away. There is nothing you can do about it than to get up and fight, which we did in this Test match. To beat a team like Australia, especially in Australia, there is no point having one good day or two good days, you have got to have five good days if you have to beat them. As simple as that."

India began the final day of the Test still needing four wickets with scores level, and were held up by a stubborn tail helped by a missing seamer and by now a lifeless track. "We were focusing on accuracy and discipline," Shastri said. "And be patient. Be prepared to be patient even if they batted a session or a session and a half. Be prepared to chase even 100 or 150 if needed. Think in that fashion. Think as if you have to take 10 wickets not just four wickets."

Shastri was glowing in the praise of the stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane, especially his batting. "The discipline," said Shastri of Rahane's century. "On such a big stage, in a massive arena, to come as captain of the team, bat at No. 4. When he went out to bat, we were two down for 60 and then to bat six hours on probably the toughest day to bat. It was overcast; all day the sun never came out. He batted for six hours. Unbelievable concentration. I thought his innings was the turning point."

Shastri acknowledged the calmness of Rahane played a part on the field. "He is a very shrewd leader, he has a good understanding for the game. A good reader of the game. And I thought his calm composure out there in the middle helped the debutants as well, helped the bowlers as well. There was a calming influence out there. In spite of losing Umesh [Yadav], he did a great job out there."

One of the big positives for India will be that the debutants Mohammed Siraj and Shubman Gill looked ready for the occasion, for Test cricket, playing in a big match. "That's the brand of cricket we have been playing for the last three or four years," Shastri said. "When you saw these two debutants show that kind of maturity and discipline there, it was great to see. Today Siraj's effort was outstanding actually. He might not have the numbers to show for it but the discipline and the ability to bowl long spells, the maturity he showed for someone playing his first Test, doing the job he had to do once we lost Umesh, was outstanding.

"Then Shubman going and playing with that kind of flair later on was great to see. Great character. More than anything else, great character. He looked very very mature for someone playing his first Test match. He looked very calm and composed. Wasn't afraid to play his shots, which was great to see. Even in the second innings, it was very easy to get into a shell but he went out there and played his natural game, which was great from the team point of view."

Shastri credited the IPL for giving India international-cricket-ready debutants. "A lot has to do with the IPL," he said. "The fact that they share the dressing room with international players, they rub shoulders with the best, it is that complex factor disappears very quickly. And you see what you see now."

While Shastri gave all the credit to the players, the team management made a bold move of playing a fifth bowler, Ravindra Jadeja, who proved his worth in all three disciplines. "He is a genuine allrounder," Shastri said of Jadeja. "That is why he bats where he is. He can bat at 6, he can bat at 5 if need be on a given occasion. But he is a genuine genuine allrounder. That's why he lends a lot of balance to the side. Also when you play overseas there is a chance of one of the bowlers getting injured, like you saw with Umesh. With Jadeja there, it gives better balance and it also gives fast bowlers some respite with Jaddu and Ashwin doing the bowling."

They also replaced Wriddhiman Saha, the more accomplished pure wicketkeeper, with Rishabh Pant, the keeper-batsman. "I thought he was very very good," Shastri said of Pant. "Anyone can make a mistake. Any batsman can make a mistake. I thought the discipline he showed, the runs he made, his ability to counterattack, and play some shots and move the game forward. It is a huge plus for the team. He showed it in this game. He might have got only 29 but there was a lot more than 29 there."

Shastri confirmed they will continue with five bowlers for the next Test, but will wait to see how fit Rohit Sharma is before deciding on any change in the batting for the third Test. "We will stick to five bowlers," Shastri said. "Rohit joins the team tomorrow. We will have a chat with him tomorrow to see where he is placed physically because he has been in quarantine for the last couple of weeks. Also got to see how he feels before we take the call."

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Cam Newton has mostly struck a positive chord in his first year with the New England Patriots, but after another frustrating performance in which he was pulled midway through the third quarter of a blowout loss to the Buffalo Bills, he vented.

Newton was asked about a graphic on ESPN's "Monday Night Football" broadcast that showed he woke up each day at 4:20 a.m., left his home at 4:30, and didn't retire for the night until 11:30 p.m.

"That's been my schedule for 90% of the time I've been here, so you can kind of understand the frustration I do have when I don't have the outcome, because I'm sacrificing so much. You're talking to a person who hasn't seen his kids in three months," Newton said.

"Obviously, the contract is what it is. Submitting myself to this team is something I've been doing since day one. Being accessible. Yeah, it's frustrating. It makes you mad."

Newton is playing on a one-year deal with a minimum base salary of $1.05 million. The contract includes incentives and bonuses that will ultimately increase its value by approximately $2.6 million.

On Monday night against the Bills, he finished 5-of-10 passing for 34 yards, while adding four rushes for 24 yards, which included a 9-yard touchdown on a scramble play.

Coach Bill Belichick pulled him with 8 minutes, 21 seconds remaining in the third quarter, with the Bills leading 31-9.

"Cam did a good job for us. I mean, that wasn't the problem," Belichick said of the decision to turn to second-year quarterback Jarrett Stidham. "We weren't very competitive in the game."

In fairness to Newton, he threw a perfect downfield strike to receiver Damiere Byrd on the first drive of the game that Byrd dropped. The play highlighted how the Patriots' issues go well beyond Newton himself, as their receivers and tight ends have been among the least productive across the NFL this season.

But Newton also acknowledged that he can also play better.

"It's extremely frustrating, knowing what you're capable of, having belief in yourself. It's just not showing when it counts the most," he said.

Belichick said he hasn't decided his quarterback plans for the season finale Sunday against the visiting New York Jets.

Of Belichick's support to this point, Newton said: "The feeling is mutual. I will keep getting better each and every week, getting more comfortable in this offense for the last week that I possibly can. Let's see where it gets me."

But his frustration was palpable late Monday night.

"It makes you angry knowing that to be a trusted teammate you first have to submit to authority and submit to what the coaches are asking you to do. I feel like I have done that. I'm not in the place of blame. I'm more or less venting right now because, yeah, I've sacrificed so much this year," he said.

"I mean, it hurts when you have the outing that you have tonight, just to go home, then start it over for a whole another week."

Sometime around 4:30 p.m. local time Monday, Rudy Gobert walked out of the 21c Museum Hotel in the west end of downtown Oklahoma City and stepped onto a bus to make the seven-block trip over to Chesapeake Energy Arena.

Nine and a half months ago, Gobert walked out of that same hotel and stepped into a car to be taken about 20 blocks away to the University of Oklahoma Medical Center to be tested for COVID-19. It seemed preposterous Gobert might actually have the coronavirus, but after returning negative tests for strep and flu, he got a swab up his nose. Less than 24 hours later -- only about 10 minutes before the Oklahoma City Thunder and Utah Jazz were scheduled to tip off on March 11 -- he tested positive for the virus, kicking off a series of events that forever changed the NBA ... and the sports world as a whole.

On Monday, Gobert made the long walk down the hallway to the locker room he never saw in March, the one his teammates spent hours confined in, with unknowns and fears circling them as they sat in a circle with blue surgical gloves and masks on, waiting for health officials to arrive to test them.

"I walked into my office and I remembered how I spent a little time in there," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said Monday with a smile. "I won't call it PTSD, because it's not that extreme, but certainly there are memories."

Monday's game was a full-circle moment for Gobert and the Jazz, with the flood of memories unavoidable, though they didn't want to make it a focus of the night. They didn't spend too much time talking about it, Snyder said, but little things, such as being at the same hotel or seeing the locker room or walking onto a court with no fans, served as reminders.

"I had the same [hotel] room, believe it or not," Donovan Mitchell said. "Which is ironic."

The Jazz won the game 110-109, with Mitchell hitting a banked runner with seven seconds left to provide the final margin. The Thunder had a chance to win at the buzzer, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander driving to his right, but he was met by the towering presence of Gobert and his albatross arms contesting the shot. Gilgeous-Alexander's layup was short, Gobert grabbed the rebound and the buzzer sounded with the ball in his hands.

"It's just basketball. I was just focused on trying to get the win," Gobert said. "The one [big] thing was being back at the same hotel, all the memories. It was a little weird."

Gobert's life changed in March when he tested positive a few days after he touched reporters' recorders on a table in front of him, making light of new protocols put in place by the league to separate players and media to protect against the spread of the virus. He became the NBA's patient zero, with his carelessness an example. He accepted responsibility and apologized, then spent two weeks contending with the virus and dealing with strong symptoms, which included months without being able to taste or smell.

"Rudy was vilified, and in hindsight, we have a greater understanding of the virus," Snyder said. "I think Rudy recognizes fully there were some mistakes made, and those mistakes were made over and over again by different people, all of us.

"In that moment, it was such a significant thing; and in Rudy's case, he's had a chance to process it. We always challenge ourselves when we have adversity, to make you better, and I think Rudy has come out of this in a place where there's growth. Not just Rudy, but for all of us."

Much has changed since March -- people, places, things.

"It's the same year. It's still the same year from all of that," Mitchell said. "It feels like it was forever ago, but I don't think we thought about it too much. We had a moment where we got here and it was like, 'All right, we're back.'"

The game in March also was an inflection point for the Gobert-Mitchell relationship, with tensions rising over the transmission of the virus after Mitchell tested positive the following day. The entire chemistry of the Jazz locker room was in question, with many openly wondering if something would have to give. Would the Jazz trade one of their stars? Could they work it out?

Mitchell admitted it took him "a while to cool off," and the two went an extended period of time without talking. When the NBA resumed in the Florida bubble, Gobert and Mitchell were forced to confront the issue and repair the fracture. They realigned with a common goal as the unifier: winning.

Monday's game was fitting for a lot of reasons, but to have Mitchell hit the go-ahead shot and Gobert produce the winning stop showcased the formula the Jazz have built their hopes on. Snyder referenced the growth the team experienced from that night in March, but it runs deeper than winning a basketball game almost 10 months later.

"I think all of us have such a greater appreciation for what we consider to be a normal life," the coach said. "You can't help but remember that evening; it was significant for both teams, really for the league. But also, the contrast between that point and where we are now, the season, the hiatus, the bubble, coming back and playing again -- it seems like a lifetime since that happened."

2.50pm: India win by eight wickets

Bowled out for 36. Virat Kohli goes home. Mohammed Shami out of the tour. Umesh Yadav limps from the attack. India had to overcome so much that their victory at the MCG, achieved midway through the fourth day by eight wickets, will forever have a part in their cricket folklore. Whether it is part of something even greater will depending on the next three weeks, but for now they can reflect on one of great bounce back victories.

The early loss of two wickets will have left India grateful - and Australia rueful - that the target wasn't in three figures, but it never threatened to be become nervy. Australia's lower order made them work for the final four wickets during the morning session but they could never break free of the stranglehold on their scoring, so by the time R Ashwin wrapped up the innings on the stroke of a delayed lunch the lead stood at only 69. Their final tally of 200 in 103.1 overs was their slowest Test innings on home soil since 1986 and they managed just 10 boundaries.

Full report to follow

2.05pm: Nerves for India?

Australia have taken two early ones. Is that enough to put India on edge? The struggling Mayank Agarwal edged a big drive against Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins claimed Cheteshwar Pujara again. India's No. 3 played an uncharacteristically loose flat-footed drive which he thick-edged to gully. A small target has just got a little bigger

1.00pm: Lunch - Australia 200 all out

India will need 70 to level the Test series. It took them all the morning session to work through Australia's lower order - it was extended with the innings nine down - before R Ashwin wrapped things when Josh Hazlewood shouldered arms and had his off stump clipped. Australia scored at under two-an-over during the innings, a testament to how well India kept control.

It was another interesting session for the DRS as well. Mitchell Starc though he was out, caught at slip, off Ravindra Jadeja but the replays showed he had hit his boot as the ball rebounded off the pad and he was able to make a long walk back to the middle having got almost to the boundary rope. Then late in Australia's innings Starc survived a line-ball lbw decision when beaten by Ashwin's carrom ball, the tracker showing it to hitting a good portion of the bails but it remained umpire's call which had been not out on the field.

DRS debates will likely rumble on, but barring something extraordinary India should have wrapped this up by tea.

12.10pm: India chip away

India have made inroads with the new ball, firstly Jasprit Bumrah bouncing out Pat Cummins and then Mohammed Siraj ending a very good innings from Cameron Green when he picked out midwicket with the pull. Australia's lead is approaching 50, but they have just two wickets in hand. Green innings, in which he faced 146 balls, was very promising and should ensure that his position is not up for debate for the remainder of the series as Australia try to work out what to do with their misfiring batting order.

11.30am: Steve Smith on his struggles

Steven Smith has spoken about his lean series to SEN Radio this morning:

"At the moment I'm searching for time in the middle; that's the most important thing for me," he said. "When I look at this year, 64 balls is the longest I've spent in the middle, during those one-day games.

"For me, that's important. I find a lot of rhythm out in the middle. You can bat as much as you want in the nets but there's nothing that can replicate what a game can do, so that for me is what I'm searching for at the moment. That can be tough to do, particularly in a Test match when you've got some quality bowlers."

And on his battle with Ashwin, he added:

"I probably haven't played Ashwin as well as I would've liked; I probably would've liked to have put him under a bit more pressure. I've sort of let him dictate terms and that's something I've probably never let any spinner do in my career.

"I've sort of taken it to them, been a bit more aggressive and made them change things. I haven't allowed that to happen, probably because I'm searching for just being out there for long enough. It's kind of a two-edged sword in a way, but I think I've just got to have the confidence to take it on and play my game."

11.15am: The new ball

Australia have got through the first phase of the day up to the 80-over mark but have only been able to squeeze out 16 runs. They will now have to combat the new ball to have a genuine chance of building a competitive lead. India hustled through their overs, especially R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, building pressure on Cameron Green and Pat Cummins. Both batsmen played quite well - bringing up a fifty partnership - although found it difficult to break the shackles.

10.35am: Have your say

10.00am: A twist to come?

India are on the brink. Australia lead by just two runs with Cameron Green and the bowlers to try and haul the lead towards something defendable. It's a huge ask. Even if India don't break through straightaway the new ball is available in 14 overs. Still, stranger things have happened and in this of all years we probably shouldn't rule out anything. If India do wrap up the game it will have to go down as one of their finest ever victories: bowled out for 36, Virat Kohli goes home, Mohammed Shami injured and then yesterday Umesh Yadav limps off as well.

Plenty of questions for Australia to ponder especially around a batting line-up that has completely lost its shape. The return of David Warner can't come soon enough. They won't make wholesale changes (for one, the biosecure bubble doesn't really allow it) but there isn't really a player in the top six who can claim to have played at the top of their game yet - although a nod to Matthew Wade for how he has adapted to opening.

Australia captain Tim Paine lamented his side's ongoing batting woes after they sank to an eight-wicket defeat at the MCG against India, which put the series on an even footing at 1-1 with two Tests to go.

The home side scraped to 200 - for the first time in the series - in their second innings, but could go no further than that, setting India a target of just 70, which was achieved with ease. That followed first-innings totals of 191 and 195 in the two matches, with Melbourne being the first time since 1988 that Australia have not had an individual half-century in a home Test.

"We are very disappointed, we played pretty poor cricket, pretty sloppy cricket, for the majority of the match," Paine told the host broadcaster after the match. "That's to take nothing away from India; they put us under pressure and forced us into making a number of mistakes, especially with the bat, and in the field, and when you do that against good side it makes it very hard to win.

"You've got to give the Indian attack credit, they've bowled beautifully to us, there's no doubt about that. We haven't adapted as well as we would have liked. As a batting group, there's no doubt we are very disappointed with what we've put up in the first two Test matches, but there's still two to go so we'll work hard and try to rectify it for the next Test."

Australia would be desperate for the return of David Warner, who has spent time netting at the MCG during this match while he awaits his return to the bio-secure Test bubble, as he continues his recovery from the groin strain suffered in the ODI series. During the Test, Australia coach Justin Langer said Warner was not certain for the third match but the continued batting problems of the incumbents may force the selectors' hands.

One glimmer for Australia was the performance of Cameron Green in the second innings, as he made a composed 45 in nearly three hours at the crease.

"Think he's started his career really well," Paine said. "We knew the talent he's got, we can see the temperament he's got, and with more and more Test cricket he's going to blossom into a pretty outstanding player, which is exciting for us as a team and the Australian public to watch."

You're not going to lose it in three weeks. That is the attitude Sam Billings is carrying into his first BBL match for the Sydney Thunder after 14 days quarantine in an Australian hotel room.

Billings could be forgiven for showing some frustration at the Covid cricket world where isolation and bio-secure bubbles are the new norm.

He is in the best form of his career having established himself in England's ODI team thanks to a superb home series against Australia. But an embarrassment of riches in the England T20I team and a Covid outbreak in South Africa meant he did not play a single game on England's tour before heading straight to Australia where he spent two weeks, including Christmas, stuck in a hotel room as part of the Australian government's strict border requirements on international travellers entering the country.

Rather than wallow in what might have been, Billings is going with the flow.

"You're not going to have everything aligned perfectly at times," Billings told ESPNcricinfo. "But you have a really good idea of what you need going into a game to be mentally ready.

"It's like riding a bike. You're not going to lose it in three weeks. It's just about getting your mind right. Two really good training sessions and I feel in a really good place."

Quarantine hubs have made life difficult for international cricketers. Billings' England team-mates Tom Banton and Tom Curran both withdrew from the BBL citing bubble fatigue.

Billings was well aware of what he signed up for. He was full of praise to Cricket Australia for setting the travelling England players up with two-bedroom apartments, a treadmill, and an exercise bike, to keep the legs ticking over while cooped inside.

Billings believes the key to not letting the walls close on him was his attitude, however, he was also extremely sympathetic to those who had opted out.

"The most important thing was getting into a really good routine," he said. "Kind of having a purpose for each day and the first hour of the day was all about setting it up in terms of what I wanted to get out of it and having some organisation to it.

"I think that's the real key. Not just letting the days drift and feel as if you're not getting too much out of it. I was very lucky with the support I had around me and had a kind of plan to embrace it and look at it from a positive point of view as opposed to a negative mindset.

"I had to reflect on things I needed to get done and things I needed to improve. For a really bad experience which I wouldn't wish on anyone, actually what came out of it was a really positive summer"

Sam Billings on coming back from injury

"I think as well as a player, we're going to have to used to these kinds of things, and constantly learn and evolve on the back of them. At times it's hugely challenging for some individuals, and it's so individual. If guys are really struggling, it's absolutely no judgement."

Billings, 29, credits the toughest year of his career for his discernible shift in mindset. A freak shoulder dislocation cost him a chance to be part of England's magical 2019 World Cup. Rather than regressing, it has propelled him to greater heights in terms of his preparation and his mental strength. The results were obvious for all to see when he made his maiden international century against Australia at Old Trafford in September.

"I think the whole process is natural," Billings said. "As you get older and more experienced it's something that develops. Missing the World Cup through injury the year before, it was a pretty steep learning curve in terms of what I needed to get done.

"I had to reflect on things I needed to get done and things I needed to improve. For a really bad experience which I wouldn't wish on anyone, actually what came out of it was a really positive summer. Probably my best summer in an England shirt. It was only through the back of the changes I made through being injured, that I developed. I saw it as, obviously a negative experience, but a huge positive that really helped me develop as a bloke but also as a cricketer as well."

Some continuity in selection has also helped. England's limited-overs teams have been among the most difficult to break into in recent times and an extended run certainly added his progress.

"For me, it's all about, and it's so cliché, focusing on the process as opposed to trying so hard to perform well," Billings said. "Certainly at times for England I would play one game and do well and be out of the side because it's such a hard side to get into. But this summer was so nice to play a consistent run of games. Not worrying about not playing the next game has just allowed me to play and play my own way.

"I know that when I'm on, when I'm playing well, when I'm comfortable in the environment, I know that I add value to any side that I play in. Hopefully, I just continue to do everything I can to give myself the best chance and that's all I can do really. Hopefully, I can add some value to the Thunder."

This will be Billings' third stint in the BBL after playing 11 games over two seasons, from 2016 to 2018, for cross-town rivals the Sydney Sixers. But Billings was keen to join the Thunder due to a connection with Sydney's western suburbs. He experienced a life-changing summer at Penrith Cricket Club in 2013-14 playing Sydney grade cricket alongside Pat Cummins. Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler, and Joe Root have also represented the Thunder in recent times but Billings' friendship with Shane Watson, through their experiences at Chennai Super Kings was the clincher.

"I'm pretty close to Shane Watson through my time at Chennai, I spent a lot of time with him," Billings said. "I'm very thankful for all the help he's given me. He had nothing but positive things to say about the Thunder. It was a pretty easy decision.

"The biggest thing for me was that I was their guy that they wanted from day one and that goes a long way for any player. Straight away it was that loyalty both ways. I really enjoyed that. I'm really fired up to do well and give back to these guys."

He joins a Thunder team in red-hot form. He will slot in nicely into the middle order and is looking forward to a rare opportunity to keep wicket.

"It will be great to get the gloves back on, hopefully, there are not too many cobwebs," he said. "And obviously in the middle order, that's something that I really want to make my own if I'm honest. In terms of internationally but also around the world as well. Not many players want to bat in the middle order. Obviously, it's a pretty challenging position against spin with the field out."

He explained it can also be a different challenge in Australia compared to other parts of the world. Australia have struggled to produce world-class middle order T20 players with the style of play required on the bigger grounds with the field spread asking for slightly different skills.

"I think with these big grounds it's obviously about being positive, backing your options," Billings said. "You can kind of run people ragged with these big pockets. I like my running between the wickets so I think that's a huge part of it.

"That's kind of how you can go at low risk 10-an-over against spin. If you hit a boundary an over and then you're running people ragged out to the sweepers, that's when you put people under pressure at relatively low risk. There will be different challenges. Obviously, a lot of pace bowlers go into the pitch [with shorter lengths] because of big square boundaries.

"It's coming up with different game plans and hitting gaps. It's not necessarily all about hitting sixes. You hit the ball hard along the ground over here. The outfields are generally so quick that you get value. It's just playing smart cricket on these big grounds."

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Jared Goff underwent surgery on his broken right thumb Monday in Los Angeles and won't play Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals, coach Sean McVay said on Monday.

"We felt like that was going to be the best thing to do for him and for our team," McVay said, adding that Goff had some screws inserted and that he could return for the playoffs if the Rams advance.

John Wolford is Goff's backup and will start in his place.

Goff injured his thumb in the final seconds of the third quarter Sunday in Seattle as he completed a 9-yard pass to tight end Gerald Everett. As he followed through on his throw, Goff's right hand hit the helmet of Seahawks defensive end Benson Mayowa.

"Popped it back into place," Goff said, "and just finished the game."

During his postgame videoconference with reporters, Goff downplayed the impact of the injury and said his thumb felt "not terrible."

He also said his thumb didn't bother him on throws, as Goff completed 6 of 14 passes for 74 yards after the injury.

The Rams' 20-9 loss to the Seahawks on Sunday marked the first time this season they have lost two straight games. They can still clinch a playoff spot with either a win against the Cardinals or a Green Bay Packers victory at the Chicago Bears in Week 17.

Information from ESPN's Lindsey Thiry was used in this report.

LOS ANGELES -- Alex Caruso will miss Monday's game against the Portland Trail Blazers because of the league's COVID-19 health and safety protocol, Los Angeles Lakers coach Frank Vogel said before the game.

Caruso, who played 11 minutes in the Lakers' 127-91 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday, was considered questionable for the Blazers game because of a right hand strain, but Vogel clarified that it wasn't Caruso's hand that was keeping him out of the Portland game.

Vogel said there were no other players or staff members being held out of Monday's game because of the contact tracing portion of the health and safety protocol.

"Everything we do at work, so to speak, in our travel party and everything is designed not only to keep us safe from the virus, but to protect us from quarantine situations," Vogel said. "If we're not following the protocols and a staff member is in close contact with someone, then they're going to be subject to a potential close-contact quarantine. So that's at work. So that's why we feel like it's safe to go through an NBA season the way we're doing it.

"All these protocols are in place to keep everyone safe. So make sure we follow them, and the things that you have to think about is that's not the only place people are. If any of us has a situation where a family member tests positive or something like that, we could all be subject to that type of close contact quarantine and but -- in terms of what we're doing at work, these protocols are designed to keep us safe."

Caruso is averaging 5.3 points and 1.7 rebounds in three games off the bench this season.

All players are required to undergo daily coronavirus testing this season. The Lakers conduct the tests at their facility in El Segundo, California.

"We adjust the testing window based on what our day looks like," Vogel said. "An off day, I think we're typically doing something like 8 to 12, guys can come in any time during that window. And if we have practice at 11 or noon, we just adjust the testing window accordingly. For 9:45 shootarounds, testing starts at 7:30. So, we adjust it based on the day's schedule and if we're on an off day, we just drive in, go get tested and drive home."

A league source, when speaking to ESPN about the testing requirements, said, "there's no such thing as an off day this season."

NEW YORK -- Grizzlies star point guard Ja Morant left the Barclays Center court area in a wheelchair Monday night after spraining his left ankle in the second quarter of Memphis' 116-111 overtime win over the Brooklyn Nets.

X-rays on Morant's ankle revealed no fracture, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, and he is expected to undergo an MRI as soon as Tuesday.

The 6-foot-3 guard was hurt when he went up to attempt to block Nets forward Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot's shot and landed awkwardly on Luwawu-Cabarrot's foot.

Morant didn't put any weight on his left leg as he hopped over to the sidelines, before collapsing next to the Grizzlies' bench. He rolled around on the floor in pain while the team's training staff came over to him.

After a few minutes, a staff member rolled a wheelchair over and Morant's teammates helped him into the chair. Morant was immediately wheeled back to the locker room and later ruled out for the remainder of the game.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Morant returned to the Grizzlies' bench wearing a protective boot on his left leg. He limped into the team's huddle during timeouts and doled out high-fives to his teammates.

The reigning Rookie of the Year has gotten off to an impressive start through the Grizzlies' first two games, averaging 36 points and 8 assists.