Australia vs India: Cricket Resurfaces After a Chaotic Year

Australia and India: An Epic Duel Amid the Pandemic

At the end of a year marked by Covid-19, Australia and India prepare to face each other on the same stage where they began their last encounter in 2018: the Adelaide Oval. This emblematic stadium, with its iconic scoreboard and Moreton Bay trees, will be the backdrop for India’s first day/night Test match away from home, starring the teams of Tim Paine and Virat Kohli. This clash between two of cricket’s most important powers promises to be even more special than their previous encounters, which have been constant over the last two decades. The very realization of the series is a triumph in itself. Despite the significant financial forces that have driven India and Australia to contest 12 Test series since 1999, a number comparable to the Ashes series that Australia has played against England in the same period, participants and spectators have faced uncertainties about the viability of the series due to the pandemic. During the difficult months of March, April and May, when world sport almost completely stopped, the possibility of the series not taking place was a constant concern. Recently, the challenges focused on the obstacles to organizing the series, despite the goodwill between Cricket Australia and the BCCI. In a year where its leaders faced challenges with state associations, state governments, and the media, CA was grateful that India’s administrators and players did not raise significant issues about the tour. The obstacles for CA’s interim CEO, Nick Hockley, and chairman Earl Eddings, centered on finding an entry point for the charter plane carrying the visiting team. Initial plans to land in Perth were moved to Adelaide, then to Brisbane, before finally settling on Sydney, Canberra, the New South Wales government, and the SCG Trust. Anxiety reached its peak during an extensive and, ultimately, unsuccessful negotiation with the Queensland government. Even after the arrival of the Indians, there was a possibility that a Covid outbreak in Adelaide would alter the series. For a long time, the Adelaide Oval was due to host at least one Test, and possibly two, given the prolonged quarantine that Melbourne faced for most of the year, which generated uncertainty about Boxing Day until October. However, an outbreak that forced a brief lockdown in South Australia led to considering the possibility of starting the Test series with a day/night Test at the MCG and then continuing with a more traditional game from December 26. These variations were key for the Adelaide Oval curator, Damian Hough, who has managed rock concerts and football schedule changes in the past, but this year has prepared a test pitch with a Christmas parade instead of the Sheffield Shield matches as preparation.

“One thing we’ve learned with Covid is to live more in the present,” Hough said. “We like to plan months in advance. We still had plans, but we had to live in the moment a little more,” he added. “A U2 concert last year was a much bigger challenge than what we are going through this year. I never thought I would see a Christmas parade at the Adelaide Oval, so it’s a unique year.”

Damian Hough

The Australian team has had the advantage of training in the center of the playing field, which Paine considers crucial.

Virat Kohli and Tim Paine could face each other on the field this year.Paine highlights the importance of early preparation in Adelaide and the challenge of adapting to the conditions with the pink ball and the lights. Kohli’s adaptation, who did not participate in the practice match at the SCG, will be crucial. This is Kohli’s only Test in the series before Ajinkya Rahane takes over the leadership. Australians, with players like Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Nathan Lyon, have been successful in dismissing Kohli early in the last two series. Paine acknowledges Kohli’s ability to adapt and the challenge he poses.

“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 undoubtedly one of the best players, if not the best player in the world,” Paine said. “There will be a time in this, well, there’s really only one Test, so let’s hope not, but when you play against players as good as Virat, sometimes they get away from you, that’s just the game.”

Tim Paine

Paine highlights the importance of having different options in the Australian attack to counter Kohli. Paine, who values his Test career more than most after nearly retiring from cricket in 2017, doesn’t feel “bubble fatigue”.

“Absolutely not. I love it, to be honest,” Paine said. “I don’t think this hub has been as strict as perhaps the IPL or the one in England. I sleep very well at night; my kids are at home, which is good in a way, but I certainly miss them. But I sleep better here and feel fresher here than at home, so life in the bubble might make me play longer, if anything.”

Tim Paine

The events of 2020 have ensured that this last chapter is as vivid as any sporting competition, especially when many around the world remain confined due to the pandemic.