Australia vs India: Cricket Clash in Adelaide after a Chaotic Year

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 their previous series began in 2018. The iconic view of the scoreboard and the Moreton Bay trees at the north end of the field evoke the tradition of Test cricket, serving as a backdrop for the teams led by Tim Paine and Virat Kohli in India’s first day/night Test away from home.

This encounter between two of cricket’s most powerful nations promises to be memorable, especially after a period of uncertainty. The series, which has been sustained by the financial forces driving the clashes between Australia and India since 1999, is a testament to perseverance in the face of adversity. In the difficult months of March, April and May, when sport stopped, the possibility of the series not taking place was real. Even more recently, the obstacles to the organization of the series were significant, despite the goodwill between Cricket Australia and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). CA’s interim chief executive Nick Hockley and chairman Earl Eddings faced logistical challenges, such as finding a point of entry for the charter plane carrying the Indian team. Initial plans to land in Perth were modified to Adelaide, then to Brisbane, before Sydney, Canberra and the New South Wales government secured the event at the SCG. Even after the arrival of the Indians, a Covid outbreak in Adelaide could have changed the course of the series. Adelaide Oval curator Damian Hough has had to deal with rock concerts and football scheduling changes, but this year he has focused on preparing a pitch for a test match with a Christmas parade as a prelude.

“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 in the moment a little more,” he added.

Damian Hough

Practice sessions in the center of the field are a competitive advantage for the Australians, something that Paine did not hesitate to highlight.

Virat Kohli and Tim Paine are expected to face off this year.Paine commented on the advantage of training in the center of the Adelaide Oval, crucial for adapting to the match conditions with the pink ball and under the lights. Kohli’s adaptation, who did not participate in the practice match at the SCG, will be fundamental to the result in Adelaide. This will be Kohli’s only test match in the series, before Ajinkya Rahane takes over the captaincy. With players like Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Nathan Lyon, the Australians have had success in dismissing Kohli in previous series. Paine acknowledged Kohli’s ability to adapt and cause damage, highlighting the importance of having effective plans against him. Paine, who values his test cricket career, does not feel fatigue from the “bubble”.

“I don’t think so. I love it, to be honest,” Paine said. “I don’t think this bubble has been as strict as the IPL or England’s. I sleep really well at night; my kids are at home, which is good in a way, but I 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 series between India and Australia is presented as a vibrant sporting event in a year marked by the pandemic.