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A poignant moment, a redemption like weve never seen before in Test cricket - Mohammad Amir bowling again at Lords. After that fateful day in 2010 when he crossed a white line and endured the loneliness of isolation in gaol, he must surely have wondered if the game would ever afford him a second coming. But so it has come to pass.Cricket has a history of redemption stories, not all of them as dramatic as Amirs, though. For Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif, co-conspirators on that infamous day, one wonders whether there will ever be another postscript to their careers. Asifs sublime talents will be more of a loss to the game than Butts, a decent enough batsman though he was without ever threatening to be one of the greats of Pakistan cricket. Perhaps advancing years will conspire against them making an international comeback.Old age has done nothing to curb Brad Hoggs amazing return to a cricket career that was all but written off a few years ago. That Western Australia coach Justin Langer is sorry to lose a 45-year-old to another franchise speaks volumes for the success of Hoggs renaissance. To think that a cricketer of that vintage can still command bargaining power to negotiate bigger contracts.To return to crickets great comeback stories, let me prod the memories of readers to see if we can think of other tales as wonderfully redemptive as Amirs. My mind darts immediately to Bob Simpson returning to captain Australia during World Series Cricket, in much the same way that Colin Cowdrey fronted up to face Jeff Thomsons thunderbolts earlier that decade.In terms of recovering from a brush with the law, neither Hansie Cronje nor Mohammad Azharuddin had the opportunity to purge themselves of the stain on their careers after the match-fixing allegations. Like Saleem Malik before them, they were probably too old to start again, despite impressive careers to that point.Shane Warne had a number of comebacks, from injury, from retirement, and from the drug suspension just before the 2003 World Cup when he allegedly took pharmaceutical advice from his mum. In my opinion, he should have got an extra year for such a lame excuse!It doesnt get more dramatic than the courage shown by the Sri Lankan cricketers who returned to international cricket after the bus shooting incident in Pakistan. It speaks volumes for their love of the game, undiminished even under a hail of bullets. Of those cricketers who returned from rebel tours to South Africa in the 1980s to enjoy meaningful international careers, Terry Alderman, Graham Gooch, John Emburey and Kepler Wessels come readily to mind. Wessels case was unusual in that he not only went on to represent South Africa but also captained them in their inaugural World Cup, in 1992. Gooch and Emburey were also forgiven to the extent that they captained England after the rebel tours, Emburey being even more remarkable by going on a second rebel tour and being picked again for England between 1992 and 1995. Now thats called having your biltong and eating it!The return of Alderman and Gooch has an ironic twist to it of course - such was Aldermans dominance over Gooch in 1989 that the batsman allegedly requested he be dropped because his front pad kept getting in the way of Aldermans gentle swingers. It was almost a Lazarus moment: asking to be dropped and then peeling off 333 against India barely 12 months later.As far as I can recall, not many of the West Indies or Sri Lankan rebel tourists had much of a career upon returning from South Africa. Ezra Moseley may have played a few Tests, but he was nowhere near the force he was when he terrorised league cricketers in northern England during the 1980s, myself included.Some would argue that the vast sums of money in the modern game would act as an encouragement to some players to contemplate a comeback (or delay retirement). Viv Richards had a late dalliance with Rishton in the Lancashire League, after he was past his imperious best, no doubt. I recall being flayed by him when Glamorgan played Oxford University in 1993, when he was all but retired, and I remember thinking it was humbling to imagine him in his pomp if this was what he was like as an old man.Conversely, though, I wonder if the less rigorous physical demands of the pre-professional era encouraged a few cricketers to don the whites again, comfortable with their skill levels and not burdened by the demands made in terms of athleticism in T20 cricket these days. Then again, watching the likes of Chris Gayle, Sohail Tanvir and Kieron Pollard in the field now makes you even question that assumption.Whats the opposite of a comeback, when someone simply refuses to desert the troops? In Amir, Pakistan have their youthful hero. In Misbah-ul-Haq, playing in his first Lords Test at 42, they have the other end of the spectrum covered too. His story is that of the gnarly, grizzled, faithful soldier with an unblemished record who refuses to desert his troops. He, with the charismatic Younis Khan, no stranger to multiple career rebirths himself, provides a safe place for Amir to return. Cheap Boston Bruins Jerseys . Hey!" The lower tier of the School End of Queens Park Rangers Loftus Road was packed solid with a very festive-sounding Chelsea choral section in this particular part of South Africa Road London, W12. Cheap Bruins Jerseys Authentic . -- Patrick Reed got an early start in golf. http://www.cheapbruinsjerseys.com/ . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. Cheap Adidas Bruins Jerseys . Miikka Kiprusoff had just announced his retirement after a decade-long run in Calgary and it would be up to Berra and Ramo to fill the void. Cheap Bruins Jerseys China . Tracey comes to the Blue Bombers after spending over a decade with Queens University. Most recently he was the schools assistant football coach.TORONTO -- Canadian mens basketball coach Jay Triano has seen Brady Heslip hit more than a few shots over the years. He watched him do it again Thursday night. The guard from Baylor University, who just happens to be Trianos nephew, scored 18 points and was named player of the game as Canada defeated Jamaica 81-72 in the opener of the Jack Donohue International Classic. "Ive known him his whole life and hes never lacked confidence shooting the basketball," Triano said of Heslip. "Thats a great thing. I want him to shoot the basketball when hes open like that." Heslip, who scored 12 points in the fourth quarter as the Canadians pulled away, finished the night 7-of-10 shooting, including 4-for-7 from three-point range. "Theres no greater honour than playing for Canada," said Heslip, who grew up in Burlington, Ont. "Thats been instilled (in me) my whole life and its been my main goal. "Everybody wants to be a part of what were doing right now and the direction Canada Basketball is going." Levon Kendall added 16 points for the Canadians, while Jevohn Shepherd chipped in with 12 of his own in the first game of the exhibition showcase being held at the Ryerson Universitys Mattamy Athletic Centre. Jamaica got off to a quick start with the first four points of the game, but the Canadians came back to lead 29-21 after the first 10-minute quarter. Canada saw its lead cut to two at the break thanks in large part to Jamaicas Adrian Uter, who scored 15 of his 16 points in the first half. The hosts got a spark in the third when Andrew Nicholson, who plays for the Orlando Magic, got tangled up with Jamaicas Samardo Samuels. Teammates quickly stepped in between the two to prevent things from escalating, but the exchange fired up Canada. "It was a little chippy out there," said Canadas Cory Joseph, a member of the San Antonio Spurs. "We know its a physical game in FIBA, especially in the lane and you could see that tonight." In addition to the NBA talent suited up to represent Canada, there was plenty of support in the gym with forward Andrew Wiggins, who will play at the University of Kansas this season and is expected to be the top pick in the 2014 draft, among those in the crowd. "Its great just to have all of the media hype, and the support of all the fans," Joseph said. "Were looking to grow from here.dddddddddddd Youve got to love it, for people to come out and represent our country. We were just trying to put our hearts on the court for them and it was good." While Wiggins has elected to spend his summer preparing for his freshman season in the NCAA, he figures to be part of the programs future. "Those guys are part of our pool of players," Triano said. "Theyre part of Canada Basketball moving forward. Obviously, Im happy theyre here and theyre a part of this team. Theyre a part of the pool of players that were going to move forward with and them getting to watch is educational for them as far as what we need to do and what were going to have to do better." Canada and Jamaica meet again Saturday night at 7 p.m. for a rematch. The hosts got a spark in the third when Andrew Nicholson, who plays for the Orlando Magic, got tangled up with Jamaicas Samardo Samuels. Teammates quickly stepped in between the two to prevent things from escalating, but the exchange fired up Canada. "It was a little chippy out there," said Canadas Cory Joseph, a member of the San Antonio Spurs. "We know its a physical game in FIBA, especially in the lane and you could see that tonight." In addition to the NBA talent suited up to represent Canada, there was plenty of support in the gym with forward Andrew Wiggins, who will play at the University of Kansas this season and is expected to be the top pick in the 2014 draft, among those in the crowd. "Its great just to have all of the media hype, and the support of all the fans," Joseph said. "Were looking to grow from here. Youve got to love it, for people to come out and represent our country. We were just trying to put our hearts on the court for them and it was good." While Wiggins has elected to spend his summer preparing for his freshman season in the NCAA, he figures to be part of the programs future. "Those guys are part of our pool of players," Triano said. "Theyre part of Canada Basketball moving forward. Obviously, Im happy theyre here and theyre a part of this team. Theyre a part of the pool of players that were going to move forward with and them getting to watch is educational for them as far as what we need to do and what were going to have to do better." Canada and Jamaica meet again Saturday night at 7 p.m. for a rematch. ' ' '