England knew what they were getting when they plumped for Gareth Batty for the tour of Bangladesh and, latterly, India. They got themselves a straight-talking, wise old hand, and a natural leader of their callow spin attack. Moeen Ali has played much more, and Adil Rashid has played much more recently, but neither has Battys presence or streetsmarts.That Englands spin cupboard is bare is beyond doubt. As Paul Farbrace said before flying home after the ODI series: We are still improving there. We all know there is not massive depth - to be honest there seven or eight guys in the frame in England and five of them are on this trip. The others are Liam Dawson, who did not play in the ODIs, Zafar Ansari, a member of the Test squad, as well as Jack Leach and Ollie Rayner, who came closest to making the squad. The riches are hardly embarrassing.Even if he does not pull up trees, Batty was a shrewd pick, for he works with Ansari at Surrey and used to play for Worcestershire with Moeen, who said this week: I know him well. I learned quite a bit from him - hes a very good spinner.There is no spin-bowling coach on tour, until Saqlain Mushtaq joins up with the squad in India, so Battys experience - his first tour with England was to Bangladesh, 13 years ago - will be vital. His constant chatter with Rashid about how to go about their business was a noticeable aspect of Englands first full training session, which happened in lieu of a washed-out practice match. They will play a 45-over game against a BCB XI on Saturday, then a two-day game on Sunday and Monday.It is likely that Batty will join Moeen and Rashid in the XI for Thursdays first Test in Chittagong, where it is expected to turn. England may revert to two spinners for Dhaka, but the side is far from decided, with places up for grabs opening, in the middle order and among the bowlers. All of the 16 players on tour - three of whom are uncapped - could play. Batty is approaching the task at hand with characteristic relish.Its a positive [that spin plays a big role here], he said. In England its more seam-orientated, so its actually really nice that spin could play a part. We wont know until we see the surfaces, but its a challenge and a real good thing for spinners to be able to say hang on a minute, we can help to win games of cricket for England.After a difficult end to the domestic season, Rashid is enjoying a very fine tour, having taken 10 wickets in the ODIs, which equals the most by a spinner in a three-match series ever, while also going at five runs an over. Rashid, like many of the squad, has a spring in his step and Batty believes the success of the ODI side can rub off on the Test squad. Winnings a habit, its a culture, he said spikily.England have played 142 Tests since Batty last made an appearance, against Bangladesh at Chester-le-Street in 2005, before Kevin Pietersen even debuted. Since, England have gone through 10 frontline spinners before plumping for Batty again, and while he did not expect his recall, he is relishing it, and believes he is a better bowler now than he was 11 years ago.This is brilliant to be a part of, he said. Theres a wonderful vibe about the place, I noticed that from stepping on the plane with a few of the Test boys, theres a great camaraderie around the group. Its a great privilege to be involved with England, and hopefully I can add to that and do my bit.The proof will be in the pudding, if Im fortunate enough to get a go, but on a daily basis for the last few years I have known what I have to do and gone about my business as I would require - I feel a better bowler, yeah.Does Batty have nothing to lose? A little bit. Its a nice opportunity when youre nearing the end of your career to be able to say Ive managed to progress and will hopefully keep progressing throughout my career. We will see where we get.Whether he is selected or not, two things are for certain: Batty will remain fiercely his own man and, secondly, he firmly believes age is just a number, and is unfazed by playing with Haseeb Hameed who, at 20 years his junior, is less than half his age.Thats the norm! he said. There are a few boys at Surrey who are even younger than that. Id like to think everybody takes the age out of it. They see the wrinkles in the morning and think hes an old sod, but for the rest of the time hopefully Im just one of the boys. Wholesale Air Max Shoes . Burke is expected to miss two to three months after breaking a finger in the teams third preseason game. Tinsley, a 10-year veteran, spent the last two seasons in Utah, where the point guard averaged 3. Cheap Air Max Sale . 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His speech improved, but vision and hearing issues persisted.Months after the blow that caused his concussion, Rudy Ayala still had significant symptoms.Though he loved playing football, the lingering problems, along with watching a friend suffer a similar injury, led Ayala to make a difficult decision: He walked away from football.I just realized the damage that can happen to your brain with a big blow like that and I didnt want it to happen again, Ayala said.The NFL and NCAA have taken steps toward preventing, identifying and treating concussions in recent years. The practices used on those levels have trickled down to high schools, where coaches are getting better concussion-recognition training, limitations have been put on head to head impacts and treatment protocols have been established.At the same time, concussions are still a substantial issue in high schools, in part because there are so many more players at that level than in the college and professional ranks combined.The National Federation of High School Associations has guidelines for concussions, including management of athletes who exhibit symptoms and an online concussion course developed with help from the Centers for Disease Control.But the reach only goes so far; there are just too many schools, too many players and too many variations from state to state and school district to school district to make sure concussions are being treated in a uniform manner.The fact that were talking about treatment of concussions is an advancement, said Dr. Javier Cardenas, a neurologist at the Barrow Neurological Institutes Concussion and Brain Injury Center. That said, theres clearly more left to be done.Inconsistencies in the availability of athletic trainers can make it difficult.Having coaches and parents with concussion awareness is a big step, but athletic trainers have a deeper, more clinical understanding of what to look for and what needs to be done after a head injury.Most big school districts can afford to have athletic trainers at every school. Smaller districts may have a trainer who serves multiple schools or none at all.Nationally, about 55 percent of schools have a full-time athletic trainer, according to the National Athletic Trainers Association. Arizona has one of the highest rates at 60 percent and California, in part because of licensing issues, is around 20 percent.If theres one thing that a school can do to improve the safety, it is to have an athletic trainer, Cardenas said. But thats not always possible.Games have a higher rate of concussions due to the increased intensity and larger impacts, with 1.86 per 1,000 athlete exposures, according to a Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics study. From an overall standpoint, more concussions occur in practice, a logical progression since there are far more practices than games.Ayala suffered his concussion while practicing the day befoore a game in August 2014.ddddddddddddA defensive lineman on Tempe High Schools junior varsity team, he was injured while tackling a teammate during warmups and the coaches sent for the schools athletic trainer. When Ayala collapsed while trying to stand up, the trainer called paramedics and rushed him to the hospital.I saw him, he wasnt looking right, said Ayalas mother, Teresa. He was just acting weird and I said somethings not right with him. It was very scary.At the hospital, doctors ran a battery of tests and scans to make sure nothing catastrophic had occurred with the impact. The presentation of the concussion was typical, so doctors sent Ayala home.His odyssey was just beginning.Ayala suffered intense headaches, had problems with his hearing and vision, particularly in bright light. He also had trouble with his speech, issues with sleeping and struggled with his balance, often needing to catch himself on a wall after stumbling.Ayala was told not to use his cellphone, computer or to watch TV for more than three months. Accommodations were made for him at school, like closing the blinds in the classroom to block out light, moving him to the front of the classroom so he could keep focused on the lessons.Progress moved at a sloth-like pace, the symptoms lingering months after the initial impact.I felt like, `Am I going to get better? he said. I was really scared.The previous protocol for concussion treatment was rest and more rest. In recent years, doctors have taken a more proactive, multi-disciplinary approach.From a physical standpoint, doctors can prescribe headache medicines and help patients work on their balance. They offer speech therapy and will work with patients on regaining their hand-eye coordination.Doctors now also work on behavioral therapies, helping patients get past the irritability, anxiety and depression that can often come with a concussion. There are cognitive therapies as well, assisting patients with their short-term memory, focus and tasks like calculations or finding the right words when their minds struggle.Our recommendation is you can be active in your recovery aside from that initial period of two to four days, Cardenas said. We want them to get back to being active, healthy and normal, but still avoid injury.Ayalas case was atypical.Most teenagers will recover from a concussion in 14 to 21 days. Ayala continued to have symptoms nearly two years after his injury.Teresa said it took about a year of working with Cardenas before she saw my son come back. Even then, it wasnt until recently that Rudy was cleared to return to sports. He still occasionally suffers headaches.I would hate for anyone to have to go through anything like that, said Ayala, now a senior at Tempe. I know I wouldnt.Ayala is currently a member of Tempes cheer squad for football games and plans to go out for the baseball team next spring.His football career is over. ' ' '