Key posts
Good afternoon, there’s breaking news
G’day everyone and welcome to today’s live blog as the second test begins at the Adelaide Oval.
I’m Roy Ward and with me will be Andrew Wu and we will be taking you through play today with the match set to begin at 3pm (AEDT) as this is a day-night Test.
Please feel free to leave a comment on the blog at any time and enjoy the hours to come. We start with breaking news from Adelaide via Daniel Brettig:
Josh Hazlewood is joining Pat Cummins on the sidelines for the Adelaide Test, his place taken by Queensland’s Michael Neser after Scott Boland was confirmed as replacing Cummins.
Neser played his first and so far only Test match in the corresponding Test in Adelaide last year, after Cummins was ruled out at the last moment as a COVID-19 close contact.
The moment Windies thought they lost close Adelaide Test
By Daniel Brettig
Members of the 1993 West Indies side still get an involuntary physical reaction when reminded of the nerve-jangling circumstances in which they prevailed over Australia by a solitary run at Adelaide Oval 30 years ago.
The close margin was celebrated at the time and remains a source of pride and wonder for the players – Phil Simmons, Desmond Haynes, Brian Lara, Ian Bishop and Carl Hooper – who will be present for the Test this week.
Phil Simmons, Courtney Walsh and Keither Arthurton celebrate West Indies’ one-run win in Adelaide in 1993.
As guests at Adelaide’s Test match dinner on Tuesday night, representatives of the current squad were reminded of the moment through a photo of Courtney Walsh celebrating the final wicket, Craig McDermott boldly given out caught behind by umpire Darrell Hair when a short ball brushed helmet and maybe glove.
For Simmons, the image brought an instant response.
“Every time it comes up, there’s a chill, my pores raise every time I think about it,” Simmons said. “So for that alone it tells me, that is probably something that I can’t relive. Every time you think about it, you’ve just got to enjoy it.
“It comes back every time. When I came here for the 2015 World Cup I was excited about the ground, but just the fact I remember that day and how close it was. Even last night at the dinner, just seeing that photo of when [Walsh] got the wicket and how we were celebrating, just brings a lot of joy and a lot of emotion.”
See Thursday’s edition of The Age for the full story.
Australia will bat first
Australian captain Steve Smith has won the toss and decided to bat.
He told Fox Sports the pitch looked like a traditional Adelaide Oval pitch and his side loved to bat first in Adelaide and look to set the tone for the match.
Smith confirmed bowlers Michael Neser and Scott Boland will come into the side for Josh Hazlewood and Patrick Cummins who are out injured.
Khawaja welcomes back ‘Captain Grumpy’
By Roy Ward
Australian batsman Usman Khawaja has compared the mannerisms of stand-in captain Steve Smith with the legendary grumpiness of long-time skipper Allan Border.
Smith will take the leadership role from Patrick Cummins who is out of the Adelaide Test and Khawaja joked Smith’s serious mannerisms during his previous tenure as captain were something his teammates enjoyed mocking.
Steve Smith.Credit:Getty Images
“Welcome to the return of ‘Captain Grumpy’,” Khawaja joked while speaking to Fox Sports pre-game.
“I think the teapot will come out at one stage and he will be throwing his hands up
“We give him a bit of stick about that.
“I’ve loved playing with him these last couple of years and I think playing with Marnus [Labuschagne] has brought out the best in him and he is as relaxed as he has ever been.
“Hopefully, he brings it into his captaincy today, I can already see he has his game face on and looks very serious.”
Cummins, Warner, Boland, Lyon and crowds: Five things to watch for in Adelaide Test
By Malcolm Conn
1. Pat Cummins v the medical staff
Australia’s medical staff have done Pat Cummins and Australian Cricket a great service by ruling the Australian captain out of the second Test against the West Indies in Adelaide, beginning on Thursday.
Cummins is understandably disappointed that he will miss a second successive day-night Test, one of the special occasions in Australian cricket.
However, the bigger picture is an eye-watering schedule stretching out for the next 15 months. As captain and Test cricket’s most highly ranked bowler, Cummins is integral to the Australian side across a three-Test series against South Africa, Test tours of India and England, a 50-over World Cup, another home summer, and a tour of New Zealand.
Good afternoon, there’s breaking news
G’day everyone and welcome to today’s live blog as the second test begins at the Adelaide Oval.
I’m Roy Ward and with me will be Andrew Wu and we will be taking you through play today with the match set to begin at 3pm (AEDT) as this is a day-night Test.
Please feel free to leave a comment on the blog at any time and enjoy the hours to come. We start with breaking news from Adelaide via Daniel Brettig:
Josh Hazlewood is joining Pat Cummins on the sidelines for the Adelaide Test, his place taken by Queensland’s Michael Neser after Scott Boland was confirmed as replacing Cummins.
Neser played his first and so far only Test match in the corresponding Test in Adelaide last year, after Cummins was ruled out at the last moment as a COVID-19 close contact.
