Kurtis Patterson, 23 (NSW) It has taken some years for Patterson to build on the potential shown in 2011, when at 18 he became the youngest batsman in Sheffield Shield history to score a century. But since the start of last summer, only George Bailey has more Shield runs than Pattersons 959 at 53.27. Ed Cowan calls him the best young top-order batsman in the country by miles. Importantly, Patterson has worked on his patience, learning to bat for long periods: on a very slow and challenging pitch in Mackay last December he hunkered down for 261 balls for 55. And he can bat a side out of a hole: in March, the top order collapsed around him to be 4 for 26, but his 100 led the recovery and New South Wales won the match. He also has recent form, having made three half-centuries from four innings against South Africa A in July-August, and 111 and 60 in the first two Shield rounds of the season. Patterson is certainly one of the leading candidates for a call-up to Adelaide.Peter Handscomb, 25 (Vic) On the list of Shield run scorers since the start of last summer, Patterson is closely followed by Handscomb, who in that time has 932 runs at 44.38. A versatile batsman who has moved up and down the order and now settled at No.4, Handscomb importantly has stepped up when given opportunities for Australia A. This winter he made a first-class 137 against South Africa A and 87 against India A, and on a tour of India last year impressed with 91 in Chennai. In that match he used his feet well against the spinners, and his state captain Matthew Wade this week described him as arguably one of the best players of spin weve got in Australia. Adding to his big-match credentials, he was Man of the Match in last summers Shield final win over South Australia for his 112 and 61*. He has started this Shield season with 78 and 60 in the first two rounds, and with 60 first-class games behind him, should be ready for Test cricket.Cameron Bancroft, 23 (WA) If Australias selectors want a young batsman who can bat long - really long - then Bancroft should be the first name on their list. In March 2015, he batted for 13 hours and 567 balls in compiling 211 against New South Wales, comfortably the longest first-class innings by any Australian in the past decade. In fact, since his first-class debut, three of the 12 longest Shield innings have belonged to Bancroft. He found a way to handle spin against India A, sweeping to great effect on his way to 150 in Chennai last year, and is a likely candidate for next years Test tour of India. All of this makes it incomprehensible that Australias selectors picked him for a T20 earlier this year. Perhaps it was fortunate that he didnt get to face a ball. Test cricket is Bancrofts future. However, it is questionable whether now is the best time to chse him, for he hasnt made a hundred in his past 23 first-class innings.Travis Head, 22 (SA) Highly rated for several years already, Head for a long while had one great failing as a first-class batsman: he couldnt seem to crack triple figures. Early last summer he finally - in his 64th first-class innings - made a century, and went on to score three for the Shield season, including 192 against Tasmania, a remarkable innings in a low-scoring match. It was a fine way to step up in his first full season as South Australias captain. Whether he has a Test-match temperament perhaps remains to be seen - two of his three first-class tons have come at near or better than a run a ball - but equally there have been times when he has played in a more grinding style. Either way, his talent is not in question. At 22, he has already played for Australia in ODIs and T20s and captained his state to a Shield final. If his time is not now, it may not be far away.Nic Maddinson, 24 (NSW) Ever since he scored a century on first-class debut at age 18, Maddinson has been watched closely as a future international prospect. His talent is not in doubt, but it has taken him some time settle into something resembling a Test-match temperament. Take his first-class 181 for Australia A against Gloucestershire in 2013 for example - it was a big innings but one that was smashed off 143 balls and fraught with danger. Although Maddinson had a modest 2015-16 Shield season, with 488 runs at 30.50, he scored 81 against India A in Brisbane this winter and has started this summer well, with 116 against Western Australia in his only game so far. Notably, it was a more patient knock, and one that tk New South Wales from 3 for 57 to nearly 300.Jake Lehmann, 24 (SA) On numbers alone, it is hard to argue with Lehmanns credentials: he averages 48.96 in first-class cricket, with five centuries from his 18 appearances. He has also started this summer well, with 129* against Tasmania in the most recent Shield round, and he showed he could adapt to foreign conditions by scoring 116 for Yorkshire against Somerset during one of only two county first-class games that he played this year. Notably, that Yorkshire hundred was a rescue effort - he came in at 37 for 3, though was dropped at slip before he had scored. Lehmann is also well-rounded as a person away from cricket, having studied human movement and health science, and he is completing a masters in primary schl teaching.Matt Renshaw, 20 (Qld) Though perhaps not a candidate for right now, Renshaw is undoubtedly a batsman the selectors will watch over the next couple of years. An opener with a gd old-fashioned Test match temperament, Renshaw describes his scoring style as nurdling and identifies Alastair Ck as a similar style of batsman. Last summer, in his first full Shield season, he scored 738 runs at 43.41, including two centuries. His patience was on display in Mackay, where on a very slow and challenging pitch he occupied the crease for 395 balls to make 170, which made him Queenslands youngest first-class centurion of all time. This year, he played Matador Cup for the first time, and is yet to make his T20 debut. Id like to expand, he said in July. But Ive got my opportunity with longer form cricket, so I dont want to try and make something in the short form and then lose that longer form. Renshaw made 94 against South Africa A this winter and has missed the first two Shield rounds due to a knee injury but is back this week.Marcus Stoinis, 27 (Vic) He may not grab the headlines like some of the others, but Stoinis just keeps piling up runs. In fact, in the past three years he has made 1772 Shield runs at 43.21, and has more scores of 50-plus than anyone but Adam Voges during that period. Add to that a score of 120 against South Africa A in Brisbane during the winter, and 77 against India A in Chennai last year - having come in at 75 for 4 - and it becomes apparent that Stoinis has plenty of credits in the bank. He also adds an extra bowling option with his medium pace and has already played ODI and T20 cricket for Australia. On the downside, he hasnt had a particularly productive start to the summer, but dont be surprised if Stoinis finds himself in a Test squad at some point down the track.Matthew Wade, 28 (Vic) Now we come to some older options, with Test experience. Wade is a combative type of cricketer and has two Test centuries to his name already - a gd tally for a wicketkeeper from only 12 Tests - and both were scored from challenging situations. He has captaincy experience and nous, and could serve as a valuable lieutenant to Steven Smith. Wade started this season with 78 in the pink-ball Shield round and averages 39.40 from nearly 100 first-class games. But as a wicketkeeper, is he gd enough to oust Peter Nevill? In any case, Nevill was one of the few Australians who showed patience and resolve in the Perth Test, where he ran out of partners trying to save the match and batted nearly four hours for 60*. It is hard to accept that replacing Nevill is the answer to Australias issues. Glenn Maxwell, 28 (Vic) Nobody doubts Maxwells talent, and it is true that his first-class record - an average of 41.64 and five centuries - is impressive for a man often viewed as a short-form specialist. But is Maxwell the type of batsman Australia want coming in to rebuild after a collapse? With a strike-rate of nearly 80 in first-class cricket, Maxwell might need to show a more measured batting side to convince the selectors that he is the man for a crisis. His three Test appearances so far have not augured particularly well. Still, after being dropped for the first round of the Shield season, he bounced back with 81 from 138 balls against Queensland, and will no doubt be talked about at the selection table.Cameron White, 33 (Vic) Bizarrely picked as a legspinner for four Tests in India in 2008 despite hardly bowling domestically, Whites Test career will probably remain limited to that one tour, especially if the selectors now decide to lk long-term and bld young batsmen. However, if they decide they want experience, fight and recent runs, then he might come under consideration. One especially notable innings came in Alice Springs in March, when Victoria collapsed to be 5 for 56 in their second innings. It left White and the lower order needing to bat out 74.2 overs against New South Wales to salvage a draw and a place in the Shield final. It is a scenario that should sound familiar after the Perth Test. Well, Victoria did it, and White remained at the end unbeaten on 97 from 253 balls. He also has a century and a fifty from the first two Shield rounds this season, and was the leading scorer in the Matador Cup.George Bailey, 34 (Tas) As with White, age is the main factor against Bailey, whose only five Test appearances came during Australias Ashes whitewash in 2013-14. But since the start of last summer, nobody has made more Shield runs than Baileys 1020 at 53.68, and he believes he is a much better red-ball cricketer now than during that Ashes campaign, when much of his lead-up focus had been on the short forms. It is possible that Baileys strong one-day record in India could help him gain selection for the Test tour there early next year, although the pitches offered up will likely be far tougher to bat on than those he is used to from his limited-overs tours. He is in form, though, and started this Shield summer with 64 in the first round and 142* in the second.Michael Klinger, 36 (WA) If an uncapped 36-year-old is the answer, then surely Australia have spent t long asking the wrong question. In the later stages of his career, Klinger has made mountains of runs, and his overall first-class average of 40.28 is weighed down by a few leaner seasons early in his career. A journeyman now at his third state, Klinger appears destined to end his career without gaining an international cap, for it is hard to imagine the selectors now wanting to do anything but rebuild for the future. It is a shame for Klinger is clearly the kind of batsman who loves batting time, and puts a high price on his wicket. In the past decade, five of the ten longest Sheffield Shield innings by balls faced have belonged to Klinger. New Balance Scarpe Offerta . Didier Drogba gave away the penalty that put Senegal one goal away from a major upset, but the veteran striker will get another chance -- probably his last -- at the World Cup after Salomon Kalous injury-time strike sealed the Ivorians place in Brazil next year. New Balance In Offerta .com) - The red-hot Los Angeles Kings will try to extend their winning streak to a season-high seven games when they visit the Edmonton Oilers for Sundays clash at Rexall Place. http://www.newbalanceoutlet.it/ .ca! Hi Kerry, Its another day and here we are lking at another dubious hit to the head. In this case Blue Jackets forward Brandon Dubinsky elbowed Saku Koivu in the head about a second after he dished off the puck to a teammate, knocking him unconscious. New Balance Scontate . No. 13-seeded John Isner and No. 21 Philipp Kohlschreiber were among six players who dropped out of the tournament on Tuesday, joining No. 12 seed Tommy Haas and two other players who withdrew on Monday. New Balance Outlet On Line .C. - The Carolina Hurricanes have placed backup goalie Anton Khudobin on injured reserve with an unspecified lower-body injury.Mark Petchey believes becoming world No 1 marks Andy Murrays finest achievement in tennis. Murrays march to the final of the Paris Masters, coupled with Novak Djokovics quarter-final exit to Marin Cilic, means the 29-year-old will take over from the Serb at the top of the world rankings on Monday.And Sky Sports tennis expert Petchey, who coached Murray during the early stages of the Scots career, says the three-time Grand Slam winner is finally being rewarded for years of hard work. Andy Murray says hes proud after becoming the world number one, replacing Novak Djokovic after 122 weeks For me its his greatest ever achievement, Petchey told Sky Sports News HQ. Its a lifetime of work for his finest hour. There is so much that goes into being world No 1 anyway, but also at this stage of his career at 29, the fact he has just been behind Novak, Roger [Federer] and Rafa [Nadal] throughout the course of his career, to finally get to the summit of mens tennis underlines just how much Andy is willing to sacrifice and persevere and be patient. Live Tennis: ATP World Tour Finals November 13, 2016, 12:00pm Live on Get Sky Sports Get a Sky Sports pass All those ingredients go in, which is why for me it is his greatest achievement.Petchey is confident Murray will not rest now he is at the summit.The one thing about Andy is he will never relax, Petchey added. He always wants to get better and better and thats why hes become such a great champion. Murray won Wimbledon for a second time in the summer Speaking to his coach Jamie Delgado, after Wimbledon they went dwn to the Nadal Academy and his team were just blown away by the work ethic that he put into the training sessions there, after winning Wimbledon.dddddddddddd. That is the reason why this week we see him as world No 1, because there was no let down, he went straight back and worked.Petchey also believes the duel between Murray and Djokovic ensures an exciting end to the season, with both players battling to finish the year as the worlds best player. Novak Djokovic says Andy Murray deserves to become the world number one after raising his level in the last year The fact that the world No 1 is on the line for the World Tour finals is great and will be a spur for both players to produce their best tennis in the next couple of weeks, Petchey added. For Andy, to finish the year as world No 1 is a big deal. Lots of players have won a Grand Slam but failed to get to get No 1 at any stage of their career; there are even fewer players that have ended up year-end No 1 and for Andy to be able to achieve that will be enough of a drive for him continue this fantastic run. Murrays next aim is to end the year as world No 1 When he was 18, he didnt love the hard work. He always loved to play tennis, but now, he loves to work hard physically. He would have had a gd career, he was that talented, but he wouldnt have become unique without investing in that hard work and growing on a daily basis to love it. Now hes arguably the hardest worker mens tennis has ever seen.Check our game-by-game updates from Andy Murray v John Isner from the ATP Paris Masters final and then follow his progress at the ATP World Tour Finals from London skysports.com/tennis, our app for mobile devices and iPad and our Twitter account @skysportstennis. Also See: Sky Live: Murray v Isner Murray proud of No 1 ranking Murray worthy of top spot Murray becomes world No 1 ' ' '