Australia vs India: The Hope Test Amidst the Crisis

Australia and India Face Off in Adelaide: A Classic in Times of Covid

After a year marked by the Covid-19 pandemic, Australia and India prepare for a new confrontation at the Adelaide Oval, the same venue where they began their previous series in 2018. The iconic view of the scoreboard and the Moreton Bay trees provide a sense of intrinsic continuity to test cricket, an emblematic backdrop for the teams led by Tim Paine and Virat Kohli in the first day/night Test for India away from home. This encounter between two of cricket’s most powerful nations promises to be memorable, especially considering the circumstances. Since 1999, they have played 12 test series, matching the number of Ashes series that Australia has played against England in the same period. Uncertainty about the series taking place was a latent concern during the toughest months of the pandemic. Cricket Australia (CA) was relieved that India’s administrators and players did not raise major issues with the tour, despite the challenges their leaders faced with state associations, state governments, and rights broadcasters. The biggest hurdles for CA’s interim CEO, Nick Hockley, and chairman Earl Eddings, were finding a point of entry for the charter plane carrying the visiting team. The initial landing plans in Perth were moved to Adelaide, then to Brisbane, before finally Sydney, Canberra, the New South Wales government, and the SCG Trust took the lead. The negotiation with the Queensland government was particularly tense. Even after the arrival of the Indians, there was a possibility that a Covid outbreak in Adelaide would disrupt the series. Adelaide Oval curator Damian Hough, who has dealt with rock concerts and changes to football matches in the past, prepared for this encounter with special preparation.

“One thing we’ve learned with Covid is to be more in the present,” Hough said. “We like to plan months in advance. We still had plans, but we had to live a little more in the moment.”

Damian Hough

Practice sessions in the center of the field are a competitive advantage for the Australian players, who arrived earlier than those who played for Australia A against the Indians on a different surface at the SCG, something that Paine did not hesitate to point out.

Kohli’s adaptation, who did not participate in the preparation match at the SCG, will be a crucial factor in Adelaide. This will be Kohli’s only test match in the series, before Ajinkya Rahane takes over the captaincy for the remaining three matches. With players like Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Nathan Lyon, the Australians have succeeded in dismissing Kohli in the previous two series. However, Kohli has shown that he can be dangerous even for the most formidable attacks.

“Everyone has big plans to get the best players out, don’t they? But that’s why they’re the best, they can adapt, they can change with what you’re doing, and Virat is certainly one of the best players, if not the best player in the world,” Paine said.

Tim Paine

Tactical discussions and pre-series plans offer a refreshing contrast to Covid protocols, border restrictions and the financial impacts of the year. Paine, who cherishes his test career more than most after nearly retiring from cricket in 2017, feels no fatigue at this moment. While there have been moments of fatigue due to the frequency of encounters between India and Australia in recent years, the events of 2020 have ensured that this latest chapter is as vivid as any sporting competition, at a time when many around the world remain confined by the pandemic.