By Ethan Jones – Sports Writer
As the series shifts to Melbourne, both Australia and India will no doubt be working on strengthening their batting performances, hoping to improve on the lacklustre efforts that were produced in Adelaide.
However, The Boxing Day Test is likely to provide a different challenge to that of the bright lights of the Day-Night format. Widely regarded as the biggest day on the Australian sporting calendar, Boxing Day is synonymous with the summer of cricket and the MCG. With crowds often reaching 90,000 on the opening day, the sheer noise of the crowd is enough to provide nervous chills to the players before they even reach the field. Unfortunately, as has been the trend throughout 2020, there will be a change to the regular atmosphere seen during the test, as crowds will be capped at 30,000 each day.
In terms of the teams approaches for the match, Australia will be more than pleased with the efforts of their bowling attack during the Adelaide test. As predicted, the pink ball seemed to move throughout the air more under the lights, a luxury that won’t be provided this time around. But perhaps most pleasing were the tight lines and lengths that were bowled while wrapping up India’s first innings and also their calamitous second dig. Cummins and Hazlewood were at their brilliant best, strangling the opposition in both innings, taking 7 and 6 wickets respectively for the match. Mitchell Starc was instrumental in setting the tone for the Aussies and seemed to have control over the trajectory of his bowling, something he will be looking to bring with him to Boxing Day. Nathan Lyon and Cameron Green were not required at all during India’s second innings, but Melbourne will likely require both to bowl more overs and longer spells.
Some question marks still remain over the make-up of the Australian batting line-up, however due to the news of David Warner being ruled out for the match, it is likely that both openers will retain their spots. On a positive note for the Australians, who struggled mightily overall in the first innings, they won a test match without Steve Smith scoring double figures. Tim Paine was a shining light in Adelaide, and his innings should set a precedent for the rest of the batsman on how to resist the impressive Indian attack. The Australian batters will be likely to show more intent in Melbourne after seeming to lack aggression in their first innings. Joe Burns and Matthew Wade will both gain confidence for Boxing Day from their second innings performances, taking it to the bowlers and not overthinking their processes.
“The biggest storyline from the first test was the shameful second innings display that resulted in the team being rolled for 36, India’s lowest ever score in their Test history.”
For Team India, the bowling attack was also a bright spot in the first test, however misfortune early on Day 3 has the potential to shake things up for the rest of the series. Similar to Australia, India bowled excellent areas to the batters and helped give the team a first innings lead. Bumrah was impressive as always, providing sheer pace and accuracy, while Yadav and Shami kept the scoring rate down. However, the most impressive bowler may have been Ravi Ashwin, who took 4 first innings wickets including the vital one of Smith. Ashwin has not commonly loved his time bowling in Australia, but he will remain a key player in keeping India alive in this series. Unluckily, a hit to Mohammed Shami may rule him out of the entire series, leaving a big hole to be filled. The bowlers will have to continue to work hard in Melbourne to achieve their desired result.
The biggest storyline from the first test was the shameful second innings display that resulted in the team being rolled for 36, India’s lowest ever score in their Test history. As Virat Kohli described in his Post Game Conference, the team seemed to lack confidence as a whole and played very tentatively, instead of trying to put pressure back on to the bowlers. Heading into Melbourne, especially without their leader in Virat Kohli, the veteran batters will have to step up and hold down the fort. Ajinkya Rahane batted well for his 42 before being undone under lights, while Pujara displayed his ‘brick wall’ capabilities by churning out 160 balls in the first innings. India may consider some changes at the top of their order, as some technical faults got exposed on the quicker, bouncier Australian pitches, but predominately a lot of responsibility will fall on to the shoulders of Pujara and especially Rahane, who will be taking over captaincy duties for the rest of the series.
Overall, the Boxing Day test looks to be another interesting chapter in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Both teams will learn from their mistakes in Adelaide but will knowingly enter the MCG expecting a completely different task. Without having to worry about the lights and the Pink Ball, it should be expected that there will be a natural shift in the balance between Bat and Ball, however with the two quality bowling attacks at hand, batsmen will still have to focus in on their craft. Having only lost 2 Boxing Day tests since the turn of the century, Australia will go in as favourites against an Indian side trying to prove they can get the job done without Kohli.
What’s your prediction for the Boxing Day Test? Are Australia going to live up to their favouritism after embarrassing India in the First Test, or will India rally to level the series?
Ethan Jones is a Sports Writer for The Pioneer Australia. He predicted a 4-0 series victory for Australia, so he’s probably pretty confident heading into this match!
Pioneer Australia 