NEU » rom scrimmage (921) and leads Po

In recent times South Africa has presented some of the toughest conditions for batsmen: the pitches usually have a fair covering of grass, and offer plenty of seam movement and bounce for fast bowlers. In ODIs, though, much of this changes: the grass is shaved off, but the pitches still retain true bounce, making them excellent batting surfaces on which you can hit through the line of the ball without worrying about seam movement or uneven bounce.That has been in evidence in the ongoing South Africa-Australia ODI series, with both teams, and especially the home side, making huge scores: Australias 294 in the first game was chased down with more than 13 overs to spare, while South Africa made 361 in the second, and successfully chased 371 in the third. In three matches the average run rate has been 6.99, the second highest so far in any ODI series of two or more matches. (The highest is 7.15, in the England-New Zealand series last year.) A part of the reason could be the absence of Australias top bowlers for this series, but that doesnt explain the economy rates of some of the top bowlers who are playing in this series - Dale Steyns is 7.33, Kagiso Rabadas 6.66, and Adam Zampas 7.52.In the last five years, the scoring rates in South Africa have gone up significantly, to 5.66. The only host country with a higher run rate - among countries that have hosted 25-plus ODIs since the start of 2012 - is India, where the rate is 5.70. During this period, there have been eight totals in excess of 350, which is the joint highest, along with India. Seven of those have come in the last couple of years, which indicates how batting-friendly conditions have been in South Africa recently.South Africa wasnt always such a great country for ODI batting, though. In the period between 2005 and 2011, the run rate here was 5.10, which was lower than those in India, New Zealand, Pakistan, England and Australia. In the last few years, though, batsmen have relished ODI conditions in South Africa as much as they have probably disliked them in Tests. That is most apparent in the opening partnerships: in Tests the average opening stand since the start of 2012 is 31.37, which is lower than the average in all countries except Sri Lanka; in ODIs, the average is 42.53, which is second highest among all countries, after Indias 44.01. The run rate in opening stands has been 5.42, which is higher than in all countries except Sri Lanka and New Zealand.In Tests the early overs with the new ball are usually a period when bowlers inflict plenty of damage in South Africa. That doesnt seem to be the case in ODIs, where the average runs per wicket in the first 15 overs is 39.19, which is better than the average in all countries except India. The run rate is only 4.83 - Sri Lanka, New Zealand and England have all done better - but that picks up in the middle overs, to 5.69, which is the highest among all teams.On the truer pitches of South Africa, these overs represent the best scoring opportunities for the batting teams, unlike in the subcontinent, where pitches often slow up and make it difficult for batsmen to force the pace. The last ten havent been as prolific, relatively, but the middle overs have ensured the overall run rate stays extremely high. In the ongoing South Africa-Australia series, the two teams have been going at 6.53 in the middle overs. These have been tough times for bowlers in South Africa, but some of them have risen to the challenge, taken wickets and kept the runs in check. South Africa have a 23-12 win-loss record at home during this period, and while the batsmen have scored a bucketful of runs, the bowlers have perhaps been the bigger heroes, restricting opposition line-ups in batsman-friendly conditions.Dale Steyn has had a wretched series against Australia so far, conceding 198 runs in 27 overs (economy rate 7.33), but he has a stellar record in home ODIs during this period, taking 36 wickets in 22 games at an economy rate of 4.51. In all but six of those matches he has gone at under 5.50 an over. Imran Tahir has been superb in the middle overs, going at 4.87 per over while taking 19 wickets at 28.63. All the eight top wicket-takers during this period have strike rates of fewer than 33 balls per wicket, and have gone at less than 5.50 per over. Those numbers have had a huge role to play in South Africas outstanding home record over the last five years. Jose Cruz Jr. Jersey .Y. - New Orleans forward Anthony Davis was chosen Friday to replace the injured Kobe Bryant in the NBA All-Star game that will be played in his home city. Mike Scott Jersey . -- Matt Kuchar and Harris English ran away with the Franklin Templeton Shootout, shooting a 14-under 58 on Sunday in the final-round scramble to break the tournament course record. http://www.baseballastrosproshop.com/ .C. -- Todd Fiddler scored a hat trick, including the overtime goal, as the Prince George Cougars survived an 8-7 win against the Kamloops Blazers in Western Hockey League play Sunday. Craig Biggio Jersey . The Celtics closed out their first preseason under Stevens on Wednesday night with a 101-97 victory over the Brooklyn Nets, who rested a lot of their lineup including former Celtics Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. Andy Pettitte Jersey . Ferrer, trying to win his fourth title on Mexican soil, will next play South Africas Kevin Anderson, who eliminated American Sam Querrey,7-6 (2), 6-4. Also Wednesday, Gilles Simon (6) of France beat Donald Young of the United States 6-4, 6-3, Ukraines Alexandr Dolgopolov downed Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-3, 6-4 and Croatias Ivo Karlovic defeated Dudi Sela of Israel 7-6 (4), 6-2. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Back in August, Florida State was expected to be contending for a spot in the College Football Playoff.One weekend into October, the 23rd-ranked Seminoles are searching for ways to salvage their season.Florida State (3-2) goes into Saturdays game against rival No. 10 Miami struggling to stop a tailspin that started the middle of last season. FSU had won 35 of 36 games from December of 2012 until midway through last season, including a national championship in 2013, but are 7-5 in their last 12 after last Saturdays 37-35 loss to No. 16 North Carolina. Of those five losses, that was the second to happen on the last play of the game.They have also dropped their first two Atlantic Coast Conference games for only the third time since joining the league in 1992. The only time FSU has started 0-3 in ACC play was 2009.Coach Jimbo Fisher spent most of Mondays press conference saying players on the offense and defense werent at odds with each other and that his team was still united. After last Saturdays loss running back Dalvin Cook and defensive end DeMarcus Walker both said that they did everything they could do during the game. Florida State took the lead with 23 seconds left on a Deondre Francois touchdown run before losing on a 54-yard field goal as time expired.Right now youre going to find out the pretenders and the contenders on your team and who they are and what they really want to be, the true character, Fisher said.The majority of Florida States struggles are on the defensive side of the ball. It is allowing 6.98 yards per play, which is fourth-worst among the Football Bowl Subdivisions 128 teams. The Seminoles have also given up 25 plays of 30 yards or more, which is second-most in the nation.Take out the Sept. 10 game against Charleston Southern (a Football Championship Subdivision school) and the numbers are worse. FSU has allowed all four FBS opponents this season to score 30 points or more. In 51 possessions, opponents have scored 24 times, iincluding 23 touchdowns, and allowed a TD on the opening drive of each game.ddddddddddddThe only other time a Florida State defense has allowed more than 30 points and 400 yards per game was Bobby Bowdens final season in 2009, when they went 7-6.Fisher and defensive coordinator Charles Kelly tried using cards last week to relay plays in from the sideline to make communication easier. Fisher said that might be used again this week. He also said that Kelly will continue to call the plays but that Fisher would be more involved in evaluating schemes and personnel.Well support those guys and make sure theyre doing the right things and were doing the right things for the players, Fisher said. What can I help you do? Tell me how I can help you. What will make you prepare better? What will make you see it better? What can we do better? Youve got to give them a voice too.On offense running back Dalvin Cook leads the nation in yards from scrimmage (921) and leads Power Five backs in rushing yards with 635. Quarterback Deondre Francois has no turnovers the past two games but has struggled passing in the red zone along with taking too much time for plays to develop.Florida State has won six straight against Miami, but the Hurricanes (4-0, 1-0) are the highest-ranked team in Florida for the first time since Nov. 14, 2010. This will also mark the first time in 30 years that the Hurricanes comes into the game ranked in the top 10 and the Seminoles are ranked 20th or lower.Fisher thinks facing a main rival this week could provide a little more incentive.I think it will get the kids attention to go down and play, knowing what it means historically here to what happens, he said.---The APs college football page: http://collegfootball.ap.org---Follow Joe on Twitter: www.twitter.com/joereedy and his work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/joe-reedy ' ' '