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Perfectly promoted, perfectly poised There was a determined effort from administrators to give the Womens Big Bash League the best chance to build on the gains made in season one. First, they carved out an opening weekend free of interference from the mens international calendar. Then they threw as much of it as possible on live television for a chance to quickly capture hearts and minds. It worked a treat.The marquee game of the four shown on Network Tens main station was Sydney Thunder versus Melbourne Stars on Saturday prime time, which generated nearly 680,000 viewers across the country at its peak, with an average just over half that number. It also happened to be the match of the round.Generating back-page newspaper coverage in the process, with 6000 spectators coming through the gates at North Sydney Oval across the six-game carnival, the foundation for WBBL02 has been laid. The quality and evenness of the contests followed, each team finishing the opening flurry of fixtures with a win and a loss. It is a season perfectly poised.Big guns bring ammo… As with any domestic hit-out, much of the success hinges on performances of the biggest names from home and abroad, and they didnt miss out at the first time of asking.Caribbean crusher Deandra Dottins unbeaten 60 in 44 balls enabled the Brisbane Heat to rally from a parlous situation to chase down the Sydney Sixers, including a blow off Ellyse Perry that nearly ended up on the moon.In both clashes between Adelaide Strikers and Melbourne Renegades, Sophie Devine saved the formers innings with her blade at number six, the New Zealand international carrying on where she left off last season with two brisk hands of 43 and 41 not out.Perth Scorchers stacked batting came correct in their second fixture against Hobart Hurricanes, thanks to 48 from Kiwi captain Suzie Bates and a fine half-century from Australian opener Elyse Villani. Bajan sensation Hayley Matthews won the first of those rubbers for the Tasmanian side, racking up a brisk 48 at the top of the order after taking two wickets.To cap off the round it was Perrys turn, converting her consistently brilliant performances from the international arena to the WBBL with an unbeaten 45, squaring the ledger for her Sixers against the Heat.…but small arms can still win skirmishes Thats right, it wasnt all about the big-name players. Emerging sorts and new arrivals put themselves firmly in the public eye, none more so than a Renegade with a new claim to all-rounder status.Sophie Molineuxs weekend got major real estate in both major Melbourne newspapers. First she bowled tidily with 0-24 before making 37 not out as her team collapsed around her chasing 117. The next day, annoyed at the loss, she grabbed the first four wickets in the rematch with Adelaide, ran out their star import Charlotte Edwards, then smashed 28 not out from 18 balls to ensure this target of 129 was run down without incident. Teammate and fellow Molly (Strano) had a decent weekend alongside, with 3 for 16 in the first game and 1 for 20 in the second, meaning the two Mollies share the top of the leagues wicket-taking table. Another level with them is Harmanpreet Kaur, hardly classifiable as emerging after her exploits with India, but a new face in this league.She delivered with immediate effect for Sydney Thunder, not just with four wickets in their second-game win over Melbourne Stars, but her brilliant batting. The target of 147 set by Stars in the first match was steep, especially from 87 for 4 with 32 balls remaining, but Kaur very nearly ran it down, her 47 from 28 including a couple of gorgeous sixes over cover. In the rematch, she belted a couple more sixes in a score of 30 not out to stroll past Melbournes 116.To infinity and beyond Thankfully this year has no more of the strange scheduling that saw teams sometimes playing twice in a day, but they are often playing back to back. Theyre also getting around the country, after visits to Drummoyne and Albury in this first few days.This coming weekend gets some more locations on the list. Adelaide Strikers and Sydney Thunder kick things off on Friday at Penrith, then back it up again on the Saturday. The other sides each start on Saturday, then rematch at the same venue on the Sunday: Perth Scorchers host Brisbane Heat at the WACA, Melbourne Stars host Sydney Sixers in the very south-east corner of their hometown down in Cranbourne, and Melbourne Renegades escort Hobart Hurricanes on a road trip to Bendigo, which will hopefully be a bonding experience and rite of passage in which both sets of players learn to put aside their differences and grow as people in the process. Directed by John Hughes. Antonio Alfonseca Jersey . The Clippers were angry about blowing a big lead; the Kings didnt like being in that kind of hole and nearly digging themselves out only to lose. Custom Miami Marlins Jerseys . Those lessons were more than enough to overwhelm the Utah Jazz. Lou Williams scored 25 points and the Hawks continued their offensive upswing as they rolled to an easy 118-85 victory over the Jazz on Friday night, winning their third straight and for the fourth time in five games. https://www.cheapmarlinsjerseys.us/ .5 seconds to play in the game, Kevin Love never stopped believing that they would come out of there with a win. Jordan Yamamoto Jersey . Nathan MacKinnon, Jamie McGinn and Jan Hejda also scored for the Avalanche, who won despite being outshot 38-23. MacKinnons goal, also on the power play, came with just over a minute remaining. Brian Anderson Jersey . Pirlo limped out of Sundays 1-0 win over Udinese after just 13 minutes. Juventus says Pirlo underwent tests on Monday which revealed he has "a second-degree lesion to the collateral medial ligament in his right knee. Three UFC events in three days! And it starts with UFC Fight Night on Thursday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.The main attraction is a lightweight championship bout between Rafael dos Anjos and Eddie Alvarez. Dos Anjos will be seeking his second title defense. Alvarez is a former Bellator MMA champion with a 2-1 record in the UFC.Lets take a closer look at Thursdays main event. Dont agree with the pick? Let me know on Twitter: @bokamotoESPN.Main eventRafael dos Anjos (25-7) vs. Eddie Alvarez (27-4) UFC lightweight championship Odds: Dos Anjos -330; Alvarez +270When Alvarez has been in a fight, his face tends to show it. When dos Anjos has been in a fight, his opponents face tends to show it.Thats one way to sum up the theme of this 155-pound title fight.Alvarez has a high degree of skill to be in the position hes in, but a major piece of his identity as a fighter is his heart. In short, he tends to get hurt a lot. Dos Anjos, meanwhile, is finally getting recognition for his elite athleticism and, especially lately, has been taking on the reputation of an offensive juggernaut -- one of coach Rafael Cordeiros patent killers.If given the option between Alvarezs heart and RDAs offense -- in a five-round fight -- Im going RDA every time. Which means: If Alvarez is to win a UFC title, he cant afford to take the amount of damage weve grown accustomed to seeing him take.For that reason, I like the fact hes working with boxing coach Mark Henry, a longtime fixture in the camp of Frankie Edgar. Alvarez is small for the lightweight division, but he doesnt always fight like it. He has a similar skill set to Edgars, and if he adds the lateral movement and feints that helped Edgar win the lightweight championship years ago, hell improve his chhances against dos Anjos, an ultra-aggressive opponent.dddddddddddd.Its hard to even recall the old dos Anjos, who went 4-4 in his first eight UFC fights. There was actually a time when labeling dos Anjos something to the effect of a purely jiujitsu, also-ran lightweight would have been more or less agreeable.In 2011, however, dos Anjos moved to the U.S. from Brazil, where Cordeiro began to tap into the then 27-year-olds physical tools. Dos Anjos is now one of the more feared strikers in the game. His left body kick is a game-changer, with the straight left not far behind. He has found a home in smothering longer-distance strikers Donald Cerrone, Anthony Pettis and Nate Diaz. His range awareness is terrific and his power visibly shakes opponents.Dos Anjos is hittable, which is somewhat inevitable given his desire to pressure, and thats really what Alvarez must take advantage of. The Edgar comparison is a simple way to put it and (make of this what you will), Henry literally called out the code instruction of Frankie to Alvarez during his last fight.Alvarez needs to play matador, stay clear of the fence and mix in leg kicks with his combinations to temper down dos Anjos movement and power. In his last two fights, Alvarez took advantage of Gilbert Melendez gassing in Mexico City and somehow managed to stuff a somewhat timid Pettis against the fence in a way we havent seen since Clay Guida wrote that blueprint in 2011. To beat dos Anjos, Alvarez needs to be mobile and always one step ahead in technique.His heart will be a factor, as it always is, but it cant be the factor.Prediction:?Dos Anjos via TKO, second round ' ' '