Australia is leaning toward retaining Joe Burns and promoting Matthew Wade to start alongside him in place of the injured David Warner, while Cameron Green has almost secured a Test debut in the traditional off-roader at No. 6. in batting. order.
This could be deduced from the words of Australia’s captain Tim Paine on the morning of the eve of the match, even if the team’s mandate is to keep the identity of the final XI “at home” until the coin toss in the Adelaide Oval. Thursday. late. Late on Wednesday, there were indicators that Paine had also considered the option of promoting himself to start, though this move would divert Green, an off-road hitter at this point in his career, down to No. 7 at the usual spot in the game. wicketkeeper. .
Paine put a great emphasis on continuity at the wing, a tick for Burns in the absence of Warner, and was hopeful that the interrupted preparation of Steven Smith, who missed Tuesday’s main session with an apparent complaint on his back, it actually serves to refresh the mind of No. 4 hitters ahead of his first test encounter with India since 2017.
The team’s final training session featured plenty of hitting time for Smith, Wade and Burns against a selection of pitchers, net throwers and backups Moises Henriques and Mitchell Swepson, as Australia’s bowling attack took its usual break at the eve of the party.
“Dave won’t be there, but we hope Steve is there,” Paine said. “Steve has had a stiff back several times before and you do it when you hit in training as much as he does. But his preparation has been very good, he has hit for the last week since we are in Adelaide, so for him to have A day off could be a blessing in disguise yesterday.
“But when we get our team out tomorrow, we would love to have David there and he won’t be, but I don’t think our team looks much different than it did at the end of last summer and us.” I’ve had a really consistent team over a period of time and that certainly helps us perform well. “
Wade, meanwhile, never opened first class, but Ricky Ponting endorsed him earlier in the week as the man who should be Burns’s partner while Warner is unavailable. “It’s certainly an option to open up hitting. There’s no question about that. I think we have a number of guys who are willing to open up hitting. That says a lot about our group, not just Wadey,” Paine said. “But Wadey in particular, we saw him against New Zealand last year with the short ball, he’s willing to risk his body for his team.
“We know he’s tough as nails and that he’ll do a good job no matter where he hits. Obviously we have a scenario where we could have a different first game and a number of guys have raised their hands to do it. the team. That’s a great thing for us as a team. “
Smith this week and Warner when in shape are shaping up to be the biggest differences in this series when they lined up against India’s first win in a test fight in Australia in 2018-19. The hosts, Paine admitted, were still trying to find themselves after the Newlands scandal at the time, and have hardened into a much more stable, accomplished, and confident unit in the intervening years.
“Having them back has clearly been a great thing for our team, certainly for me having two very experienced players with me has helped me, there’s no question about it,” said Paine. “Those guys are two of the best players in the world, they’ve played a lot of test matches for Australia, a lot of big games, a lot of big series, so their experience not just for me, but for our whole group. It has been incredible, and the way they have been with our group for the last 12 months has been incredibly good, so we are very lucky to have them back.
“In terms of my captaincy or performance on this team, it has been good. I have a role to play in this group like everyone else, as long as I keep doing that then we are all happy. My job is to hold the ground, captaining and try to score. some useful runs and tail-hitting and that’s my role and I think I’ve been doing it pretty well. “
As for Green, Paine has made no secret of his admiration for the 21-year-old, particularly after seeing him up close at the Sheffield Shield games and most recently Australia A in their road game against the Indians at Drummoyne Oval. Concussion protocols dictate that Green must pass his final series of tests on the morning of the game in order to play, but all indications are that, in parallel to a burgeoning cricket career, he is well ahead of the curve. Paine also hinted that Green’s bowling restrictions could be lifted.
“[He’s] super impressive, I’ve played him and seen him score hundreds against Tasmania before, “Paine said.” Being there with him and talking to him is really impressive for a boy his age, he understands his game very well, very clever cricket brain for such a young boy and really calm and cool under pressure. From what I’ve seen of him playing against him and the last two weeks with him, he’s made for test cricket and we can’t wait to see him come out tomorrow and drop him.
“Once you are selected in a test match, you’re good to go. Having said that, we don’t expect him to make a lot of overs anyway with the attack we have, we see it as a good change. He serves 12-14 overs. in an inning from our key fast bowlers, which is great. In terms of being able to keep them fresh in a pink ball test for the night session and in terms of being able to keep them fresh throughout the series.
“If Greeny can go the way he is, I think having him on the side allows us to have Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood on the Australian test team for longer in terms of their careers. It’s going to be a huge advantage. “. for us in that sense, we’ll wait and see how many games it will release. We will know that when it does, it will have an impact. That’s what we’ve seen of him, that’s what we expect him to do. do it again.”
Daniel Brettig is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. @danbrettig
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