Australia has bounced back from the loss of first choice wicketkeeper Brad Haddin to finish 1/126 at stumps on day one.

Australian selectors shocked cricket fans with the dismissal of Phillip Hughes and Brad Haddin from the Test squad. As it turns out, Haddin was found to have a suspected broken finger just hours before the start of play, and was immediately replaced by understudy Graham Manou.

Manou makes his Test debut this weekend at Edgbaston, but has already proven his worth with the bat as well as the gloves. In last week’s tour match against Northamptonshire, Manou had a second innings score of 59 not out, as well as taking five catches behind the wicket.

Unfortunately for Hughes, his 2009 Ashes career looks to be over. After poor showings in the first two Tests, he was dropped from the squad and replaced by all-rounder Shane Watson, who has been in excellent form throughout Australia’s tour of England.

Watson made a fine showing on Thursday, making his debut as a Test opener, racking up 62 runs from 105 balls, including 10 fours. The all-rounder is just as dangerous with the ball, however, and could cause some problems to the English batting order once they are sent in to bat. Watson took three wickets against Northamptonshire off only 15 overs.

Simon Katich was the only man to lose his wicket on day one, falling lbw to a Graeme Swann effort. However, his batting style was more akin to a ODI as he picked up 46 runs from 48 balls, including 9 fours, and a strike rate of 95.83. His dismissal sent in the Australian captain, Ricky Ponting, who is on the verge of eclipsing Allan Border’s record of 11,174 Test runs. Ponting needs just eight more to break the milestone; at stumps he was sitting on 17 runs.

The England bowlers will need to find some wickets on day two if they are to have any chance of stopping an Australian batting order that could quite easily run away with four or five hundred runs. With Swann as the only wicket taker at 1/4, and Onions (0/21) and Anderson (0/45) proving to be the most expensive bowlers, Flintoff and Broad will have to find a breakthrough in the Australian attack before the run-chase gets away from them.

Despite the heavy rain that delayed the start of play, Australia couldn’t have hoped for much better than 1/126 after only 30 overs. They now head into day two confident of achieving a high first innings score, but anything can happen in cricket, as we’ve seen in this series already.

BetUS has posted Live Betting odds on who will take out the third Test, so head on over to place your wager before the start of day two.

I just really love this picture

It looks like a few of the fights from the cancelled Affliction: Trilogy card have been picked up by other organizations. This is good news for fighters who have spent money on training only to end up with no paycheck at the end of the day.

The first fight that got saved was the Renato ‘Babalu’ Sobral vs. Gegard Mousasi fight, moved to the Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg event on 15 August. It’s actually a spot of luck in some ways, as Babalu is the Strikeforce light heavyweight champion. With another title fight added to the Strikeforce event, it’s looking to be a good value card.

Another fight that has been snapped up is Ben Rothwell vs. Chase Gormley, which will take place at UFC 104. There’s still quite a bit of time to go until that event, so this won’t be as convenient for the fighters as the Strikeforce fight should be, but getting picked up by the UFC is definitely better than just getting left out in the cold like will happen to plenty of others.

Fedor Emelianenko may also end up fighting in an upcoming UFC event… Or not. There are mixed reports from all over the place, with sources close to the UFC3 hinting that it’s a possibility and M-1 Global saying it’s unlikely, if not denying the possibility altogether. A Friday UFC press call is set to reveal the truth of the matter. This is probably the best opportunity for the UFC to sign Fedor for at least a few fights. It’s likely the first fight would be a title bout between him and Brock Lesnar, and many think that Lesnar’s sheer power could be too much for even the man considered to be the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Friday’s press conference will tell the whole story. You can already bet on the outcome of a Lesnar/Emelianenko fight at BetUS, with Fedor getting -220 odds and Lesnar trailing at +175. I’m inclined to believe that Fedor would win, but Lesnar would probably give him more trouble than people suspect.

One sign that Fedor is unlikely to have a deal with the UFC is that he has announced that he will be a character in the EA Sports MMA game. Dana White was very clear that any fighter who features in the game will never be allowed to fight in the UFC again, but Fedor Emelianenko is the most likely fighter for who exceptions would be allowed.

...Made all the better by this picture

Hopefully, the remaining big promotions will pick up other Affliction fighters quickly. With Josh Barnett, who many consider responsible for the Affliction debacle, looking to take up a pro wrestling bout in Japan on 9 August, it would be sad if he was able to fall into a new living while so many other fighters struggle to get a deal with another promotion. While Barnett may protest that he is innocent, this isn’t the first positive drug test he’s had, so he won’t be finding many sympathetic ears.

I’ll post more news on Affliction fighters getting picked up as I find it, and will post about the Friday press conference once details become available. Here’s hoping Fedor’s management and the UFC are in harmony for the next few days.

As it would take me forever to go over all of the games slated for Thursday, July 30, I’m going to have to stick to just a couple.

The New York Yankees will be facing off against the Chicago White Sox over the next three days.  They’ve just come off of another win against Tampa Bay, making this the second of the three games.  Joba Chamberlain had a lot to do with that as he managed to pitch an eight-inning shut out, leading the Yanks to a 6-2 victory.

Andy Pettitte will be starting for the Yankees, and while he has a decent record against the White Sox, his confidence isn’t quite there when it comes to playing in front of the Chicago home crowd.  He’s 3-7 in 11 starts with a 6.83 ERA at The Cell.  Gavin Floyd will be taking the mound for the Sox.  He’s played against the Yankees three times so far, two of which were starts.  He has a 1-0 mark against them and is expected to perform pretty well against one of the most powerful forces in the East.

Though the statistics might slightly favor the Sox, I’m going to go with the Yankees on this one.

BetUS is offering the following odds:

New York Yankees v Chicago White Sox
Runline
Yankees: -1 ½ +135
White Sox: +1 ½ -155

Moneyline
Yankees: -125
White Sox: +105

Boston and Oakland will be playing their fourth and final game in Boston.  It’s been a tough series for the Red Sox as they’ve lost 2 of the 3 games played.  You’d think that seeing former power hitter Jim Rice’s number being retired might inspire some win from the current boys.

Game 4 might just see a turn for the Red Sox though as Oakland’s starting pitchers have struggled at Fenway Park this year.  Plus, Jon Lester will be starting for Boston.  He has remained strong throughout the season even though the rest of Boston’s game hasn’t carried over past the All-Star break.  He leads all the American League starters with 1.83 ERA.  He’s had 84 strikeouts in 69 innings, but will it be enough to capture a win and keep the Red Sox in that wild card spot?

Oakland has been looking good against the Red Sox in this series.  They’ve totaled 17 runs and 31 hits over the past two nights.  Not what you would expect from the team with the third-fewest runs in the American League.  Gio Gonzalez will be starting for the A’s.  He’s had a bit of a mixed season though he managed to hold New York to one run and two hits in a 6 2-3 innings win for Oakland.  He’s never faced the Red Sox and the pressure is on, as he’s looking at finishing off the A’s eight-games on the road with a 4-4 record.

I could go either way on this one, but I’ll go with Boston.  Gonzalez seems like a bit of a risk.  Plus, the only other game they’ve won in this series was at home.

BetUS is offering the following odds:

Oakland Athletics v Boston Red Sox
Runline
Athletics: +1 ½ +135
Red Sox: -1 ½ -155

Moneyline
Athletics: +270
Red Sox: -330

Check out BetUS for odds on all of the games going on tomorrow.