Brisbane’s torrential rain ruined day one of the third Test between Australia and India at the Gabba, with players getting through 13.2 overs before weather intervened in the Queensland capital.
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After Indian captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and chose to bowl first, the Australians are 0-28 at stumps on day one, with opener Usman Khawaja (19*) and Nathan McSweeney (4*) unbeaten overnight.
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‘GOOD ONE TO LOSE’: SHARMA FALLS INTO COMMON TRAP
With every run Australia scored on Saturday, Nasser Hussain’s name popped up more frequently in the Gabba press box.
The numbers suggest batting is easiest on day one at the Brisbane venue, but when Indian captain Rohit Sharma won the toss, the team’s third-consecutive correct call of the series, he chose to bowl first – a trap many touring captains have fallen into at the Gabba.
The sky was grey and the pitch had a healthy layer of grass. It was nothing like the green mamba that terrorised South Africa two years ago, but Sharma was eager to unleash Jasprit Bumrah with the fresh Kookaburra while it was overcast.
History was against the Indians – Australia hadn’t lost a Test match at the Gabba after being sent in since 1985, with six wins and three draws during that period. However, this Indian team has time and time again defied history, most notably at this same venue four summers ago.
The weather gods appeared to be mocking Sharma when the clouds parted during the national anthems, with the sun’s rays baking the pitch just as play got underway on Saturday morning.
And when Australian opener Usman Khawaja cracked a couple of pull shots through mid-wicket, Sharma’s decision also came under the spotlight.
“Good one to lose,” former Australian all-rounder Brendon Julian said on Fox Cricket commentary.
“I think the lead up to this Test was a lot of rain and when the players came out for their practice sessions before they had a look at it and it was green.
“But out there this morning I didn’t think it was a bowl first pitch.”
Former Test spinner Kerry O’Keeffe continued: “You bat at the Gabba.
“If you face Australia, you want them to bat second and fourth.”
After a few overs, it became apparent the pitch didn’t have any gremlins, while India’s quicks didn’t aid the cause by bowling a metre too short throughout the morning session. Only four deliveries during the first 13 overs would have hit the stumps, with opener Khawaja and Nathan McSweeney happy to let the Kookaburra sail harmlessly through to the wicketkeeper.
For the first time in the series, Australia survived Bumrah’s opening spell without suffering any casualties.
No wickets in 13 overs is hardly disastrous territory for India, but Sharma will be praying there isn’t a repeat of Hussain’s infamous call from 22 years ago.
QUEENSLAND CRICKET BACKS GABBA PROPOSAL
Cricket Queensland and the Brisbane Lions are adamant they have outgrown their “house” at the Gabba and are firmly behind a proposal to build a new oval stadium in Brisbane.
The return of cricket to the Gabba for the third Test has reinvigorated debate as to what the future holds for the ageing stadium with a view to the Brisbane Olympics in 2032.
With a new state government elected in October, another review that is scheduled to last 100 days is underway into the prospect of building a new stadium at Victoria Park.
What that means for the historic venue remains to be seen but at least two reviews, including a comprehensive one by former Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk, have shown the ageing venue will be out of date by the end of this decade.
Cricket Australia is firmly pushing for a new stadium, so too Cricket Queensland, as its chief executive officer Terry Svenson said during an extended rain delay on Saturday.
“What we are saying … is that there is an opportunity with the Olympics coming,” Svenson told ABC Grandstand.
“It would be the home of both the cricket and the AFL (and) the Olympics (would be) able to come and use our facility at Victoria Park in the two to four weeks that the Olympics and Paralympics are on.
“But I think what we are doing is saying this place is ageing, its use-for-life is through until 2030, and we need to decide where we are going to go, and we think the best option is to build a new house, and we will bring some great partners to a new house.”
Both Cricket Queensland and the Brisbane Lions will meet with those running the latest review to push their case next week.
Lions chief executive Greg Swann said the reigning premiers were outgrowing the Gabba, stating he believes the club will have up to 80,000 members in coming years.
But he said there were a number of reasons why a new stadium should be the priority.
“It is old and it does need to be renewed, but even then it is difficult. For those who don’t live in Brisbane, it is between four main roads, so it is really difficult to do anything with it, because it is pretty much landlocked,” Swann said.
“I think the biggest issue for both of us – certainly for us – is the displacement issue. Our membership and the growth of the code, we are selling out here all the time, and the city itself is getting bigger and bigger and bigger.
“We have seen Adelaide Oval and what it has done for Adelaide. We have seen Optus Stadium and what it has done for Perth. It is funny, because the politics around … it is that no-one wants to build a new stadium. Even in those cities, no-one wanted to build a new stadium. Now if you do any tourism and you see Adelaide and Perth, the main focus is the new stadiums.
“We have been here for 30 years, so we have grown up here, but we need a bigger house because we have got more fans. We have to build the capacity and that is what we think Victoria Park does for us.”
Svenson, who met with incoming ICC chairman Jay Shah in Brisbane on Saturday with a view to cricket being part of the 2032 Olympics, acknowledged that CQ and the Lions initially backed a revamp of the Gabba.
But once the option of Victoria Park was floated, he said it became the obvious choice, while noting Queensland was at risk of missing out on international cricket if the status quo remains.
“We were certainly happy, both of us, to support the concept of a knockdown and rebuild. And I think that is one thing to say, but what we didn’t actually see was the details behind that,” he said.
“And once we started to get into the details … when we started to get a little bit more clarity, financially it was not going to work for either one of us.”
‘GET ON WITH IT’: FOUR-DAY TEST DEBATE REIGNITES
This summer’s Tests have flown by in fast motion, so Saturday’s rain delay was a jarring change in pace.
Seventeen wickets fell on day one of the series opener in Perth, while the Adelaide pink-ball contest wrapped up in less than seven session. It comes after each of the seven Tests Australia played last summer – against Pakistan, the West Indies and New Zealand – finished before stumps on day four.
As more teams embrace an aggressive approach to batting, runs and wickets are flowing at a substantially faster tempo. According to AAP, 58 per cent of Tests this decade have ended before the start of day five, while the amount of balls per match is at its lowest figure since the 1880s.
There have been 50 Tests this year, but only one finished as a draw. Subsequently, the four-day Test debate has reignited.
“I’ve been more entertained with the way that players are playing cricket these days – they get on with it,” former England captain Michael Vaughan said on Fox Cricket.
“The modern player is so geared to just playing naturally the Rishabh Pant way, Harry Brook, Travis Head.
“I just think it’s a four-day product. Scheduling will be a lot easier, a three-Test tour would only be a month.
“I’ve always loved five-day cricket … but I think it’s a four-day product.
“If we get a day of rain, these captains and players would just move the game on a bit quicker.”
The proposition of four-day Tests is more relevant for nations outside the ‘big three’, because host boards typically lose money when matches end quickly due to catering costs and ticket refunds. Meanwhile, shorter Tests create further headaches for advertisers and broadcasters.
For nations such as South Africa, New Zealand and the West Indies, where it’s becoming more difficult to prevent players from pursuing opportunities on the T20 circuit, four-day Tests could soon become a necessity.
According to Australian captain Pat Cummins, the conditions have also encouraged shorter match, with curators preparing spicier pitches since the Covid-19 pandemic. And of course, the New South Welshman has no quarrels with bowler-friendly decks for him and Australia’s pace cartel to exploit.
“It is funny, the wickets are definitely a bit juicier in the past few years. They have been played at a faster pace,” Cummins said.
“You always go into a Test thinking it is going to go five days. But the most important thing is if it does speed up, making sure you can adapt quickly.”
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