Australia vs India: Cricket Resurfaces in Adelaide After a Chaotic Year

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

In a year marked by the Covid-19 pandemic, Australia and India prepare for a new confrontation at the Adelaide Oval, the same venue where their previous series began in 2018. The familiar sight of the scoreboard and the iconic Moreton Bay trees at the north end of the field provide a sense of continuity, an essential element in Test cricket, and will serve as a backdrop for Tim Paine and Virat Kohli’s teams 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 challenges they faced to make the series happen. From March to May, uncertainty about the future of the sport was palpable, and negotiations to carry out the series were hampered by various factors. Cricket Australia (CA) thanked the collaboration of the administrators and players from India, who did not raise any major issues. The obstacles for CA, led by Nick Hockley and Earl Eddings, focused on finding an entry point for the charter plane transporting the Indian team. Initial landing plans in Perth were modified, passing through Adelaide and Brisbane before finally settling in Sydney, Canberra, and the SCG. Even after the arrival of the Indians, a Covid outbreak in Adelaide threatened to disrupt the series. Adelaide Oval curator Damian Hough has had to adapt to unusual circumstances, including preparing a pitch for a test match with a Christmas celebration as a prelude.

“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.”

Damian Hough

Training sessions in the center of the field are shaping up as a competitive advantage for the Australians, who arrived earlier than those who played for Australia A at the SCG.

It is increasingly likely that Virat Kohli and Tim Paine will face each other later this year.The Australian captain, Tim Paine, highlighted the importance of these training sessions in the center of the field at the Adelaide Oval. “We have been very lucky to arrive early in Adelaide. We trained three nights in a row in the center of the field at the Adelaide Oval, which I think will be a great advantage for our team,” Paine stated. Kohli’s adaptation, who did not participate in the practice match at the SCG, will be crucial for the result in Adelaide. This match is Kohli’s only Test in the series, before Ajinkya Rahane takes over the captaincy for the remaining three matches. Australians, with players like Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Nathan Lyon, have succeeded in dismissing Kohli early in the previous two series. However, once past that phase, Kohli has shown his ability to damage even the most formidable attacks.

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

Tim Paine

Paine also expressed his satisfaction with the tactical discussions and pre-series plans, rather than Covid protocols and border restrictions. After being close to retiring in 2017, Paine appreciates his Test career more than most. He doesn’t feel fatigue from the “bubble” and, in fact, enjoys the situation. “I don’t think this bubble has been as strict as the IPL or England’s. 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,” Paine commented.