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

Australia and India Clash in Adelaide: A Test Match with a Taste of History

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 continuity offered by the scoreboard and the Moreton Bay trees creates a special atmosphere for India’s first day/night Test match away from home, with Tim Paine and Virat Kohli as protagonists. This encounter holds special value, as they have faced each other in 12 test series since 1999, almost the same number that Australia has played against England in the Ashes series. The uncertainty about the series taking place, due to the difficulties of 2020, adds an emotional touch to the event. The initial concern focused on the obstacles to organizing the series. Cricket Australia (CA) thanked the collaboration of the administrators and players from India, who did not raise major problems for the tour. The challenges for Nick Hockley and Earl Eddings, from CA, focused on finding a port of entry for the visiting team’s charter plane. Initial plans changed from Perth to Adelaide, then to Brisbane and finally to Sydney. Even after the arrival of the Indians, a Covid outbreak in Adelaide threatened the series. Adelaide Oval curator Damian Hough has had to adapt to changing circumstances, preparing a pitch for a test match instead of Sheffield Shield matches.

“One thing we have learned with Covid is to live more in the present… We had to live in the moment a little more,” Hough commented.

Damian Hough

The training sessions in the center of the court are shaping up as a competitive advantage for the Australians, something that Paine highlighted.

Virat Kohli and Tim Paine

Paine highlighted the importance of training in the center of the Adelaide Oval pitch, especially with the pink ball and under the lights, which will give the Australian team an advantage. Kohli’s adaptation, who will only play one test match in the series, will be crucial. Australian captain, Ajinkya Rahane, will take over in the remaining three matches. Australians, with players like Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Nathan Lyon, will look to stop Kohli, who has shown his ability to score against the best attacks.

“Virat is certainly one of the best players, if not the best player in the world,” Paine affirmed. “We have plans that have worked well against him in the past; we hope they work this week.”

Tim Paine

Paine, who values his cricket career, does not feel bubble fatigue and enjoys the moment. The series between India and Australia, in the midst of the pandemic, promises to be a memorable sporting event.