Toss Scotland chose to bowl v Sri Lanka

Scotland captain Kyle Coetzer has elected to send Sri Lanka in under sunny skies at the Grange as the hosts attempt to replicate their successful result two years ago to the day over Sri Lanka at Beckenham in a Champions Trophy warm-up fixture. Despite clear skies at the toss, Coetzer's decision may also be influenced by rain forecast for around 4 pm, meaning Duckworth-Lewis could come into play later in the day.

Allrounder Michael Leask comes in for vice-captain Richie Berrington, who is out with a broken finger, from Scotland's line-up for their two-run DLS loss to Afghanistan on May 10.

Sri Lanka have rung in a slew of changes headed by Dimuth Karunaratne coming back into the squad and making his captaincy debut. The deposed Lasith Malinga is not in Edinburgh and will rejoin the squad in England later in the week.

Besides Karunaratne, there are five other changes from their last ODI against South Africa in March, which capped a 5-0 series loss. Lahiru Thirimanne comes back to open with Karunaratne. Angelo Mathews, Jeevan Mendis, Suranga Lakmal and Nuwan Pradeep all return to the line-up as well as Sri Lanka seek a winning formula trying to snap an eight-match losing streak prior to their World Cup opener against New Zealand on June 1.

Angelo Mathews and Thisara Perera are the only two players in the Sri Lanka XI to have played in both previous ODI meetings against Scotland, in 2011 & 2015. Coetzer and Calum Macleod are the only two from the Scotland side.

Scotland: 1 Matthew Cross (wk), 2 Kyle Coetzer (capt), 3 Calum Macleod, 4 Craig Wallace, 5 George Munsey, 6 Michael Leask, 7 Tom Sole, 8 Safyaan Sharif, 9 Alasdair Evans, 10 Mark Watt, 11 Brad Wheal

Sri Lanka: 1 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), 2 Lahiru Thirimanne, 3 Avishka Fernando, 4 Kusal Mendis (wk), 5 Angelo Mathews, 6 Dhananjaya de Silva, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Jeevan Mendis, 9 Suranga Lakmal, 10 Nuwan Pradeep, 11 Isuru Udana

Toss Scotland chose to bowl v Sri Lanka

Scotland captain Kyle Coetzer has elected to send Sri Lanka in under sunny skies at the Grange as the hosts attempt to replicate their successful result two years ago to the day over Sri Lanka at Beckenham in a Champions Trophy warm-up fixture. Despite clear skies at the toss, Coetzer's decision may also be influenced by rain forecast for around 4 pm, meaning Duckworth-Lewis could come into play later in the day.

Allrounder Michael Leask comes in for vice-captain Richie Berrington, who is out with a broken finger, from Scotland's line-up for their two-run DLS loss to Afghanistan on May 10.

Sri Lanka have rung in a slew of changes headed by Dimuth Karunaratne coming back into the squad and making his captaincy debut. The deposed Lasith Malinga is not in Edinburgh and will rejoin the squad in England later in the week.

Besides Karunaratne, there are five other changes from their last ODI against South Africa in March, which capped a 5-0 series loss. Lahiru Thirimanne comes back to open with Karunaratne. Angelo Mathews, Jeevan Mendis, Suranga Lakmal and Nuwan Pradeep all return to the line-up as well as Sri Lanka seek a winning formula trying to snap an eight-match losing streak prior to their World Cup opener against New Zealand on June 1.

Angelo Mathews and Thisara Perera are the only two players in the Sri Lanka XI to have played in both previous ODI meetings against Scotland, in 2011 & 2015. Coetzer and Calum Macleod are the only two from the Scotland side.

Scotland: 1 Matthew Cross (wk), 2 Kyle Coetzer (capt), 3 Calum Macleod, 4 Craig Wallace, 5 George Munsey, 6 Michael Leask, 7 Tom Sole, 8 Safyaan Sharif, 9 Alasdair Evans, 10 Mark Watt, 11 Brad Wheal

Sri Lanka: 1 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), 2 Lahiru Thirimanne, 3 Avishka Fernando, 4 Kusal Mendis (wk), 5 Angelo Mathews, 6 Dhananjaya de Silva, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Jeevan Mendis, 9 Suranga Lakmal, 10 Nuwan Pradeep, 11 Isuru Udana

There will be no changes to the 15-man provisional World Cup squad Bangladesh had announced over a month ago, with Minhajul Abedin, the chief selector, saying that the performances in the Ireland tri-series, which Bangladesh won, had convinced the selectors that the squad was the right one.

"There is much confidence on and within the 15-member squad currently in England," Abedin, who was also the team manager during the tri-series, told ESPNcricinfo. "Everyone in the squad has shown that they are capable of performing at the highest stage, which is why we selected them in the first place."

The question marks were mainly over Abu Jayed and Mosaddek Hossain, but both passed with flying colours. Mosaddek's quickfire half-century against West Indies in the final helped Bangladesh clinch their first multi-team ODI trophy, while Jayed took 5 for 58 against Ireland in an earlier game.

Liton Das and Rubel Hossain, also not considered automatic starters at the World Cup, also did enough in their limited opportunities during the tri-series to stay in the squad. Liton hit a 67-ball 76 against Ireland in his only outing, while Rubel picked up 1 for 41 in the same game.

Four reserve players - Taskin Ahmed, Farhad Reza, Nayeem Hasan and Yasir Ali - had travelled to Ireland for the tri-series, but will now continue training in Dhaka along with the two other standby players - Imrul Kayes and Taijul Islam - in preparation for the July series against Afghanistan A, who will play two four-day and five one-day games.

Most of Bangladesh's World Cup squad is now training in Leicester before the squad - including captain Mashrafe Mortaza and Tamim Iqbal, who were given a break - head to Cardiff for their two warm-up games against Pakistan and India on May 26 and 28 respectively.

Squad: Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Liton Das, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Mahmudullah, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Mohammad Saifuddin, Abu Jayed, Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain

Jofra Archer believes that his experience of performing under pressure at the IPL will help him to deal with the spotlight of his maiden World Cup, after he was named in England's final World Cup squad only weeks after making his international debut.

Archer, 24, has played just three ODIs and a T20I since his first appearance for England in Malahide earlier this month. But he has impressed with his 90mph pace and versatility as both a new-ball and death-overs bowler, and was named in the final 15 this morning ahead of David Willey.

"I got a call from Ed Smith yesterday, maybe at about six o'clock or so," Archer told Sky Sports News. "I was actually driving at the time and I just felt the phone vibrate and I answered it without looking at it, then that to stop myself and say "good evening". "But it was really, really exciting to be a part of a big summer for English cricket."

Archer's rise to international recognition has been dramatic. Late last year, he had still been reconciled to spending a full seven years completing his residency qualification, which would have made him available to England by 2021-22. But when the ECB reduced that period to three years, he suddenly became available in March this year

"I had got it in my head that I'd have to wait seven years," he said. "Then back in December, they obviously changed it a little bit, but I was prepared to wait however long it would take."

In between spending the obligatory 210 days a year in the UK to fulfil his residency obligations, Archer had been making his name on the T20 circuit with notable spells in numerous domestic competitions, notably with Hobart Hurricanes in the Big Bash and Rajasthan Royals in the IPL. Prior to his England call-up, he had played just 14 50-over matches in his professional career, but insisted he was not worried by this lack of specific experience.

"I think I'm ready," he added. "I've played a lot of cricket outside of 50 overs. And I know to deal with the pressure of crowds. Obviously because I was playing franchise cricket, that was the reason why it wasn't able to play much List A cricket for Sussex, but you don't forget how to bowl. And I think you get more opportunities to bowl than in T20s, you get another six extra overs there to take more wickets."

Furthermore, Archer's regular encounters with some of the best players in the world on the T20 circuit mean that he is arguably better prepared for dealing with the talent in the World Cup than many more experienced international bowlers.

"I think I probably have a bigger advantage over some of the other guys in our team," he said. "We play [these guys] twice a [season] in the IPL, so you know their weaknesses, you know their strengths, you know if they can't run between the wickets … it gets you an extra bit of inside information.

ALSO READ: Archer, Vince, Dawson included in England's World Cup squad

"To be honest, I think international cricket is probably the same intensity as the IPL," he added. "'I think the only thing that changes is the amount of overs but, ever since I've started, the pressure is really intense. It's different, but it still isn't different."

Despite some outspoken comments in the media from his rivals for World Cup selection - not least David Willey, the man whom he pipped to the final spot - Archer insisted he could not have been made more welcome by his new team-mates.

"Everyone welcomed me with open arms from the moment I got in," he said. "It's a really good team to be a part of, with great players, a great captain, great support staff and coaches. It's probably one of the better teams have played in."

Asked whether England were ready to live up to their billing as the No.1 ODI team in the world, and pre-tournament favourites, Archer said there would be pressure in a home tournament regardless of the team's merit. However, he felt that the experience of grinding out results in a long county season would play into the squad's hands as they embark on a tough six-week campaign.

"This is what the county season prepared us for," he said. "The county season is about five or six months long, just relentless. I don't think it should feel any different for any of our guys because we usually play from March to September anyway. For a lot of the teams, this isn't their summer, they are not usually playing cricket at this time of year. So these are the little things that can work in our favour."

Asked who he was most looking forward to dismissing during the World Cup, Archer namechecked India's captain, Virat Kohli. But he also added that the best player that he had bowled to during the IPL was his own England team-mate, Jos Buttler, in the nets with Rajasthan.

"I'd quite like to get Virat out, because I wasn't able to get him in the IPL because I think a leggie got him in every game he played. I also wanted to bowl at AB [de Villiers] as well, but don't think he's playing for South Africa. And probably Chris Gayle again.

"But Buttler, he's amazing, he's a 360 cricketer, he can hit you straight down the ground and can paddle you right behind the keeper's head… I don't think anywhere's safe as a bowler.

"I've not really had a chance to speak to him about batting, but I spoke to Ben [Stokes] when we batted in the middle a few times in the IPL. If the opportunity to bat does come in the World Cup, having a familiar face at the other end should help calm the nerves."

Further afield, there is also the prospect of Archer making his England Test debut with the Ashes looming in August.

"If they do [pick me], I'd be over the moon," he said. "But for right now I've got a World Cup to think about. I don't expect to waltz in to the Test team either so, if selected, I'll work my butt off. But, if not, I'll go back to Sussex and keeping putting in performances."

A review into religious expression from those "with and without strong" beliefs will be held by the Australian Rugby Union Players' Association (Rupa).

It comes after full-back Israel Folau, 30, was sacked by Rugby Australia after saying "hell awaits" gay people in a social media post.

Rupa said it was going to conduct the review as RA did not have rules about players expressing religious views.

"There remains a great deal of work to be done," said a Rupa statement.

"To address this, Rupa will immediately establish and undertake an expression of faith and beliefs review alongside its players, incorporating advice from those with and without strong religious beliefs.

"The aim is to hold a first meeting of the review committee following the conclusion of the Super Rugby and World Rugby Sevens Series seasons.

"We will also invite both a Rugby Australia and a Super Rugby representative to participate in this Rupa-led review, and we wholeheartedly urge them to take us up on this offer of collaboration and to contribute to a landscape with clearly established guidelines for players, which players can have confidence in."

Folau, a fundamentalist Christian, chose not to contest his sacking after a code of conduct hearing upheld the termination of his contract by RA, which meant he could not play for Australia or Super Rugby club side New South Wales Waratahs.

However, he said his decision is "in no way an acceptance of the judicial panel's findings" and he was "considering all potential avenues".

"This is a sad outcome for Israel, his family, friends, team-mates, opponents and all associated with rugby in Australia and around the world," added the Rupa statement.

"Rupa will continue to support Israel to ensure that he, [wife] Maria and their broader family receive any personal support they need in this difficult transition from Australian rugby."

After another action-packed weekend in soccer, Gab Marcotti reflects on the big talking points in his latest edition of Monday Musings.

Jump to: Bayern wrap up Bundesliga | Praise for Vincent Kompany | The Real, Bale dilemma | Serie A's top four race | Dortmund's rebuild | Messi wraps up Golden Boot | De Rossi chaos at Roma

Bayern wrap up turbulent season with another league title

There was no drama on the final day of the 2018-19 Bundesliga season. Bayern won and did it emphatically, beating up Eintracht Frankfurt, 5-1, to win their seventh straight title. Despite being 90 minutes away from a Double -- they play Leipzig in the German Cup final next weekend -- Niko Kovac's job is on the line.

The fact that he said "I'm convinced I'm staying" rather than simply "I'm staying" speaks volumes here, and if you followed Bayern's season, you'll know why.

- Honigstein: Can Bayern ever replace Robben, Ribery?

This is a team that was nine points back from Borussia Dortmund in December. And rather than putting together an inspired comeback, the narrative of the campaign has been more about taking advantage of their rivals' stumbles (and there have been many). In Kovac's case, it was also about less-than-inspired football -- the ghost of Pep Guardiola still haunts the Allianz Arena -- and occasionally stormy relations with a number of first-team players.

Saturday also marked the goodbye for three men who have marked Bayern's recent history: Rafinha, Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery after a combined 30 seasons at the club. Robben and Ribery in particular ought to be singled out. It's easy to forget that both started and made their name as traditional wingers, only to evolve into something different and more modern, during the Guardiola era. It's one thing for young players to adapt to a new boss, quite another for two veterans pushing 30 to reinvent themselves and make a radically different change. That's a credit to their professionalism and the environment that existed at the club.

There are big decisions ahead for Bayern even if Kovac ends up staying, but the lasting legacy of this season ought to be a warning shot across their bow: this title is more about your opposition's flaws than your own merits. Fix things or watch someone else win next season.

Praise for Vincent Kompany

Watford failed to put up much of a fight in the FA Cup final as Manchester City romped to a 6-0 win, matching a record for margin of victory that stood since 1903 when Bury defeated Derby County. The win seals City's domestic Treble and yes, they probably are the greatest English side in the Premier League era, although they certainly did not need Saturday's win to prove it.

In some ways, the day was all about Vincent Kompany, who announced his departure to join Anderlecht, the club where he grew up, in a player-manager role. Kompany, of course, may be City's greatest-ever captain and the way he stormed back into the starting line up after three injury-riddled seasons, scoring the key goal at Leicester in the most improbable way only cements his place in history. (The fact that by shooting from 30 yards out, he chose not to follow the standard Guardiola instruction for a center-back in that position -- play it out to the wings -- also shows what a leader is: someone who knows when to follow orders and when to trust his gut.)

Anybody who has met Kompany will tell you he is precisely the sort of charismatic, intelligent and empathetic individual who is bound to do something important in football upon retirement -- if he so chooses. The fact that he opted to return home when, you'd imagine, City were willing to roll out the red carpet for him and groom him as a future coach or club executive -- as they did with Patrick Vieira and wanted to do with Frank Lampard -- as well as giving him the option of another season on the pitch, says plenty about him.

He's been a tremendous servant to City, but the Etihad is not reality. It's an extreme situation, with a unique set-up and manager. If he wants to learn the ropes, he needs to dig in further down the food chain. The fact that he can do it at the (other) club he loves is a bonus.

A big summer ahead for Real Madrid and Gareth Bale

Real Madrid's season finished with a whimper, beaten 2-0 at home by Betis in Quique Setien's final game in charge of Betis. It was their 18th defeat of the season, their 12th in La Liga. It also marks arguably their worst campaign in more than two decades, and while the arrivals of Eder Militao and Luka Jovic may inject new life in the side next season, Sunday also offered a reminder of how they can't just flip a switch, blow up the team and start over.

After two straight weeks where he was fit but wasn't even called up to the match day squad, Gareth Bale made the substitutes' bench against Betis. He was an unused sub as Zinedine Zidane sent on Marco Asensio, Isco and Lucas Vazquez instead. Cameras pictured him laughing on the bench with Toni Kroos. At the final whistle, he disappeared down the tunnel while his teammates gathered to salute the fans: few got resounding cheers, other than Keylor Navas, who is leaving.

Bale is one of the five highest-paid players in the world, with a salary of more than $30 million a year. While his output, when prorated over minutes on the pitch, has actually been relatively steady, at least statistically, he no longer fits into the club's plans. They have Vinicius Junior, Asensio, Lucas Vazquez, Brahim Diaz and they hope to sign Eden Hazard. It's seemingly an open secret that they'd love to sell him.

Except Bale's contract runs through 2022, on the eve of his 33rd birthday. And the reality is that very few clubs can afford those wages and those who do maybe don't want or need Bale. Certainly not at that salary, anyway, and not if they also need to pay a transfer fee however small. Bale doesn't want to go on loan, and as far as we know, he won't take a pay cut either.

That's his prerogative, of course. If he's willing to sit and wait for Zidane to change his mind about him or for a new manager to take over, that's his choice. But he shouldn't be surprised if people don't understand how a guy who likely has close to $100 million in the bank is unwilling to take a pay cut in order to play. His pride may be wounded, sure, but in a couple seasons, his body won't allow him to play the game at all. And he'll never get that opportunity back.

Here's hoping he takes a leaf out of the Arjen Robben play book, swallows his pride, cuts his salary -- in the short term, at least, in the long-term it might extend his shelf-life and the money he earns -- and relaunches his career elsewhere.

I don't want Bale's Real Madrid tenure to end the way Jack Rodwell's did in Sunderland. I refuse to believe the fire has gone out and that this really is all about golf.

Serie A's top-four race goes to final weekend

Serie A is going down to the wire in the battle for the final two Champions League spots after the weekend's matches which saw Roma draw away to Sassuolo (0-0), Inter get thumped at Napoli, Milan overcome Frosinone (2-0, after Gianluigi Donnarumma saved a penalty with the game scoreless) and Atalanta concede a late equaliser away to Juventus (1-1).

The first obvious point to make is that the old trope whereby late-season Serie A games yield "weird" results as teams that don't need points happily gift them to the opposition is out the window. Napoli had nothing to play for and neither did Sassuolo. Juventus stormed back in the second half after a horrendous first 45 minutes. And sure, you can say that they didn't want to spoil the postgame scudetto party but equally, quite a few of their fans wouldn't have minded seeing Atalanta knock one of the Milanese clubs out of the Champions League places.

The upshot?

Atalanta -- home to Sassuolo in theory but in practice away to Sassuolo, since Atalanta's stadium is closed for renovations -- and Inter (home to Empoli) control their own destinies. A win guarantees a place in the Champions League. Milan (away to SPAL) need to win and hope that Inter or Atalanta draw or Milan can draw if Atalanta lose since the head-to-head tiebreaker favours the rossoneri. There's also a scenario where Roma can qualify, but it would require three different results to go their way, and they'd need a massive swing in goal difference.

The stakes are high for everyone, particularly Inter and Milan.

The former have just come out of their financial fair play settlement agreement, but missing out on Champions League revenue would limit the much-needed rebuild. (And yes, if you saw how awful they were at Napoli, you'd agree they need serious help beyond just a new manager). The fact that they're playing Empoli, who desperately need the points to stay up, isn't encouraging either. Meanwhile, Milan have their own FFP issues, of course, and things will only get more complicated if they miss out, particularly after shelling out $90 million in January on Krzysztof Piatek and Lucas Paqueta.

Whatever happens, even if they don't qualify Atalanta have already won Serie A, metaphorically speaking.

Will the real Dortmund please stand up?

From one vantage point, it's hard to tell who the real Borussia Dortmund are. Are they the side that lost just twice before February and enjoyed a six-point lead at the top of the table? Or are they the team that won just eight of their past 17 games in all competitions the rest of the way?

Youth can be an excuse for many things, and this is undoubtedly a side packed with promising talent. Then again, that's why they signed an experienced coach in Lucien Favre who was supposed to guard against a second-half collapse. Instead we saw a side lacking maturity in the spring, particularly when injuries hit.

In some ways, their final act of the season, away to Borussia Moenchengladbach, was a metaphor of the season, only in reverse. Against an opponent that still had a shot at winning a place in the Champions League, Dortmund looked chaotic and flimsy in the first half, only to rediscover themselves in the second and storm back to a 2-0 victory. Favre needs to convince the players that the real Dortmund is the one we saw after the break Saturday.

When you throw titles away, it always hurts more, but this is the club's third highest points total ever. There is plenty of raw material with which to work, and if they sell a prize asset or two, there will be plenty of resources available to narrow the gap with Bayern, who look to be heading towards a transition year next season.

Messi wraps up another Golden Boot?

Having sealed their eighth league title in 11 years, the main purpose of Barcelona's final match of the Liga campaign away to Eibar was Lionel Messi getting a chance to pad out his goals total with a view towards winning his sixth European Golden Boot. (Whether or not he cares and whether he'd happily swap them all for a World Cup, Copa America or even another Champions League is a matter for debate.)

As it happened, he bagged both goals in the 2-2 draw, which means his season ends with 36 Liga goals: he has 50 overall, with the Copa del Rey final to come. Assuming Kylian Mbappe fails to score five goals in Paris Saint-Germain's final game of the season (not likely he will) and Fabio Quagliarella doesn't bag 11 in Sampdoria's last outing (even less likely), it's yet another piece of silverware for his trophy cabinet.

De Rossi's exit causes chaos at Roma

News that Daniele De Rossi will be leaving Roma at the end of the season marks the end of an era. The man once known as "Captain Future" because, of course, there can only ever be one Capitano at Roma, will play his final game next weekend at home to Parma after 18 years at the club. The club are fortunate that they have quality ready-made replacements ready to take over the armband. Just as they went from Francesco Totti to De Rossi, they'll go from De Rossi to Alessandro Florenzi and, perhaps, one day to Lorenzo Pellegrini and then to Luca Pellegrini (no relation, in case you're wondering).

That said, it's telling how De Rossi's departure is wreaking such havoc at the club. He simply said he imagined himself playing for Roma until he could no longer stand and they "dragged me off the pitch." He also said that had he been in charge, he would have renewed his contract another year. He even said he was willing to stay on a "pay-for-play" deal. That was enough for a popular uprising among some supporters against the Roma top brass, from owner Jim Pallotta to executives Mauro Baldissoni and Franco Baldini. Even Claudio Ranieri, the outgoing manager, appeared to take a swipe when he said that he would have kept De Rossi around.

You can get the fans' reaction -- we want our heroes to be immortal -- but some of this also feels like a case of "point-scoring" against the club for what has turned into a disappointing season.

As for De Rossi, you can't picture him wearing different colors, and you'd imagine that if he has to play for a different club, he'll want it to be as far away as possible. The fact that he speaks good English and his wife is British-American (although she was raised in Rome) has prompted some to see Major League Soccer in his future. You'd imagine that would be an option, although the legacy of great European midfielders moving to MLS isn't great: Bastian Schweinsteiger, Steven Gerrard and Andrea Pirlo didn't exactly pull up trees.

So here's hoping he takes the more romantic option, mooted by some: he has long been an admirer of Argentine football, what if he rocked up at Boca Juniors or River Plate for a season or two?

I have no idea if this is even a possibility, but yeah, if it happens I'll want to witness it. And so will you.

It don't mean a thing, if it ain't got that swing
It don't mean a thing, all you got to do is sing

The tune was Duke Ellington's and the lyrics came from Irving Mills, but one of the greatest jazz standards could have been written about Mitchell Starc. He has pursued it, at times mastered it, then lost and regained it at various points of his career, but when Starc captures swing and wraps it in a yorker delivered at 150 kilometres per hour, it is one of cricket's most potent weapons.

It was one of Australia's most valuable, too, at the 2015 Men's World Cup and earned Starc the Player of the Tournament honours. His 22 wickets came at an average of 10.18 and with a giddy economy rate of 3.50. And it was Starc who struck the most devastating blow in the final against New Zealand in the very first over, that trademark swinging yorker obliterating the stumps of Brendon McCullum.

Since then, the swing has come and gone in tune with form and injuries. And now, four years after a tournament in which he was at times unplayable, the question swirls: does he have it?

"It was four years ago so a lot's changed in four years," said Starc before Australia's training session in Southampton. "I guess I'm four years older and things have changed throughout my action over those four years I think, whether consciously doing them or not and going through a few niggles and injuries which have probably affected that as well. So the last three or four months have not been focused on the last World Cup. It's about how I'm going at the minute and what I can do to get myself in the best position to help the team out going forward."

Starc hasn't played an ODI since November, at home against South Africa. But there were signs he was rediscovering a more consistent inswinger with the red Kookaburra during the Test series against India and Sri Lanka over the Australian summer. The left-armer worked closely with then Australia bowling coach, David Saker, overcoming a tendency to collapse on his front foot, something that had crept in following a string of niggles.

But a 10-wicket haul during the second Test against Sri Lanka in Canberra came at a significant cost; Starc tore a pectoral muscle and has worked his way back to full match fitness in time for the World Cup.

"I've done a fair bit of work since Canberra," said Starc. "Obviously I had a fair bit of rehabilitation straight after that and didn't bowl for a while. But having three months to chat about things and then I guess just have a little bit of a different approach to how I think about it and perhaps the change of wording and I guess my cues going forward have helped me coming back to this stage as well.

"So it's been a nice little period and things that I can focus on. I think I mentioned a little while ago just having a finer focus on a certain couple of things which are really helping me."

Errrrr… come again? If the previous paragraph reads like a well tossed word salad with a sprinkling of non sequitur croutons, it's because Starc is admitting to journalists that he's made some tweaks without giving away any clues as to what those tweaks actually are.

Let's try coming at it from another angle. Are those cues mental or physical?

"I think you could probably classify them as both," said Starc. "They're just little things I can control throughout my action and run up that help me get in a really good position and a finer focus to get that result at the other end. So they're just things I can control and I've been working on, I guess, the last few months is the feeling of it. So getting that really positive feeling of being in those certain positions or those certain cues so it's something I've really enjoyed working on and having that finer focus on those few things has really helped me."

So there's a finer focus, a positive feeling and good positions. Whatever else might be involved may become clearer during Australia's three warm-up matches and throughout Starc's World Cup campaign. And with the two white Kookaburras offering minimal assistance to swing bowlers, perhaps Starc can take his inspiration from Duke and Irv.

It makes no difference if it's sweet or hot
Give that rhythm everything you've got

PORTLAND, Ore. -- As the Golden State Warriors celebrated their fifth straight Western Conference championship after eliminating the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night, forward Draymond Green pointed out that as the conversation surrounding Kevin Durant's pending free agency continues, Durant's addition to the Warriors three summers ago made the group "unbeatable."

Durant hasn't played since injuring his right calf in Game 5 of the conference semifinals on May 8, but Green singled out Durant as being the reason the organization has been able to go to another level over the past three seasons and sits on the precipice of winning its third straight NBA championship.

"There's been so much talk about how, 'Oh, they're the Warriors. Before Kevin got there they were great.' Bulls---," Green told ESPN. "We was damn good. I think we were a very good team who was tough to beat. I think when Kevin came here, he made us unbeatable. When DeMarcus [Cousins] came here, it made people scratch their head even more. And so we need those guys. The next series is going to be tough, and I hope and pray that we can get him back."

The Warriors remain cautiously optimistic that Durant, who will be reevaluated later this week, will be able able to return for the NBA Finals, but the Warriors remain vague on an exact return because they want to make sure Durant continues to respond well to treatment.

Green was vocal prior to Game 4 that the Warriors were motivated to close out the series against the Blazers because it would allow Durant and Cousins more time to recover. Cousins has been sidelined since tearing his right quad in Game 2 of the first round against the Los Angeles Clippers on April 15. Durant would have nine full days of recovery in advance of Game 1 of NBA Finals in either Milwaukee or Toronto, scheduled for May 30. The extra rest also allows Andre Iguodala, who missed Game 4 because of a left calf injury, more time to heal.

"Our goal is obviously to get all three of those guys back," Green said. "We know we're a good team with who we have, but those guys make us great and almost unbeatable. And we know we need [Durant]."

The Warriors have praised Durant repeatedly throughout the postseason, especially in the wake of his injury after he averaged 34.2 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.9 assists in the postseason prior to getting hurt. In order to win a third straight NBA championship, Warriors players and coaches reiterated that they're going to need him in order to finish the job.

"It's very special, go five straight [to the NBA Finals], it obviously hasn't been done since the '60s," Warriors swingman Klay Thompson told ESPN. "We're aware that it's pretty amazing. It's nice that we've won with enough time to try and get K back because we desperately need him. And I think everyone knows there's a couple matchups for next series that will be huge to have him fully healthy. It's just a special time right now to be a Warrior."

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr knows Durant still has to clear some hurdles in his recovery, including being cleared for on-court work again, but he feels good about the possibilities.

"I'm just hopeful that that's the case more than anything," Kerr told ESPN of being able to add Durant back into the lineup. "We don't know how it's going to end up. I'm really proud of the guys for holding down the fort during this series, and hopefully his rehab continues to progress and we get him back because we're going to need him. No doubt."

PORTLAND, Ore. -- There is no award for most valuable player of the conference finals. If there were there's a good chance Draymond Green would've won it for his play for the Golden State Warriors in their sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers.

His defense was just sensational. His playmaking was at the highest levels he's maybe ever shown, nearly averaging a triple double at 16.5 points, 11.8 rebounds and 8.8 assists. He ran the floor like a point guard. And he hit the game-winning shot in overtime of Game 4, a clutch 3-pointer in the 119-117 win that clinched the Western Conference finals.

Players and coaches on both sides, plus the large media contingent, have praised Green for days. After calling him a "wrecking ball" after an awesome Game 3, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was asked to come up with an even better metaphor for Green the next day. He apologized that he couldn't.

But in all fairness, Green wasn't the best player in the series.

This sweep was a genuine masterpiece for Stephen Curry. Perhaps the stakes weren't high enough nor the opponent severe enough to call it the best playoff series of his career for it to qualify -- actually, forget that, it was the best series of his career.

Curry has never dominated a series like he did over these past four games, doing so in a time of need with Kevin Durant out and Andre Iguodala hobbled and then sidelined himself. Actually, call it the best 4.5 games of Curry's playoff career when you include the 33-point second half to close out the Houston Rockets in Game 6 of the previous round.

He has said many times during the past week that this was a special time because he was playing against his brother, Seth, in this series. But it's going to be a special memory because of just how dominating he was.

With his 37 points Monday, Curry finished the series averaging a career-high 36.5 points. It was the most points any player has averaged in a four-game sweep in league history. The 26 3-pointers he made were another NBA record for the first four games of a series, some of them just preposterous, such as the long-range missile he made at the end of the first half Monday that cracked the Blazers' momentum.

The stats could go on and on, but let's pause for a moment. No one freaked out about Curry's greatness these past four games. There was intense praise for Green, universal acclaim for the Warriors' role players and odes to Golden State's championship meddle. All totally legitimate.

But Curry's triple-double in Game 4 -- he had 13 rebounds and 11 assists -- threatened to be relegated to a footnote. So was the fact that he played the entire second half and overtime. That he did all of this with a pesky finger injury -- he dislocated his middle finger in Game 2 against Houston -- was brushed off.

That's because Curry has achieved one of the greatest levels a player can: He's normalized greatness.

Michael Jordan did this. LeBron James did this. Tim Duncan did this. There's such an expectation that Curry will deliver that when he does, there's an absence of appropriate acclaim.

Yep, just another good game for Curry. Oh, by the way: Had he not lost his mind for a second and needlessly traveled before hitting at 3-pointer at the end of the fourth quarter, he would've ho-hummed his way to an ultra-rare 40-point triple-double in a road closeout game in the conference finals.

"We still don't take anything for granted," Curry said. "We understand how hard it is to end at this level. We don't want to end as long as we can control it."

It's good advice. Curry's play since Durant's injury -- he had 12 points in the fourth quarter of Game 5 against the Rockets after Durant came up lame to finish off that crucial win -- should not be taken for granted.

"I just can't say enough about the competitive desire about the group of players that we have here and the culture that they have built together," Kerr said. "Being without Kevin these last five games has put us in a really tough spot, and our guys stepped up in a big way."

A bunch of guys have for sure. But one in particular deserves special notice.