Duck on a wet pitch, Perth, WA. Image: author.
A Test even making it into the fifth day seems a rarity these days. For me this one was even longer. I settled down on Friday morning to watch the first day only to discover it didn’t start until Saturday. Still took a bit of effort.
We were promised rain and got it.
Day One
At least Australia didn’t lose a wicket 0/28.
Day Two
The openers didn’t get going. Steve Smith decided on a new sideways approach with no offside play until everyone noticed what he was doing and then he whacked a couple through the covers and eventually got to a hundred and everyone was relieved. Then he got out.
Travis Head did it again. And Alex Carey did it again too with nice support from Cummins and Starc as a big total grew for a change.
Day Three
Australia bats on. A bit slowly?
Jaiswal lasts a ball longer than his previous innings. Kohli falls in familiar fashion. Rahul looks good. Marsh takes a screamer.
Day Four
Smith drops Rahul off the first ball. Cricket is a funny game. Anything might have happened. But Australia’s chance of victory might have dropped with that rare fumble. Later, Smith takes a beauty to dismiss Rahul.
Hazlewood is injured. Cummins and Starc bowl themselves into the ground. Jadeja bats well (how was he not in the team for the previous two Tests?). Reddy’s ok again but the follow-on seems certain. The fast bowlers are buggered. Akash Deep and Bumrah dig in and get there. Deep celebrates by hitting Cummins for six and a ball later the umpires decide it’s too dangerous to bat and so the day is over. Cricket is ridiculous.
Day Five
Head gets a wicket. It rains until lunch. What will Australia do with the bat?
I don’t know ‘cos I’m going out for lunch. I check the phone to see if play has resumed and it’s five for 30-something. Australia declare. India bats for a little while. It rains. It’s a draw. I’m tired.
Conclusion
a) Hazlewood is becoming an issue. Always good when he’s bowling. Missing Test matches isn’t a big deal because of Boland but being missing in action is a big deal.
b) Cricket is a team game so let’s look at Khawaja, McSweeny, Labuschagne, Smith and Marsh as a group. They’ve batted 27 times for one century, one 50 and been out 16 times for under 10.
c) It’s time for players and coaches to rethink diving for balls on the boundary. Yeah, it shows commitment but it’s too dangerous and players with bung shoulders, knees, necks are no good for anything.
d) Ashwin retires. Precise and skilful but never a smooth mover, he seemed to wind himself up prior to letting the ball go. Wholehearted in the field and with the bat too. His last Test wicket wasn’t really out but fitting that in the lead-up Mitch Marsh had no idea what the old spinner was up to.
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About Les Everett
A Footy Almanac veteran, Les Everett is the author of Gravel Rash: 100 Years of Goldfields Football and Fremantle Dockers: An Illustrated History. Co-founder with Vin Maskell of scoreboardpressure.com. Founder of australianrules.com.au and the Instagram page https://www.instagram.com/abandonedcricketpitches/
I echo your sporadic interest in cricket (Test 2/10; T20 1/10; Shield RIP). Your 4 points are spot on. The closer we get to something – the less we see. Probably explains my footy tipping.
Even before the game I couldn’t understand playing Hazelwood. Boland is 95% as good. You only take injury risks when the game is crucial; or the substitute is below par.
Infuriated about dropping McSweeney. Khawaja is older and slower than me. Marsh is in the team for his fielding. Labuschagne and Smith make one scratchy score and they’ve supposedly found the holy grail.
Ashwin’s sudden departure and the listless batting performances suggest not all is well in the State of Gujarat.
I reckon the Assistant Under Captain is getting on the nerves of the Acting Pending Captain and the Past Baton Passing Captain doesn’t want to tell him.
Season’s wishes to you and yours. Like Coyote and Road Runner we clock off at the end of September and resume hostilities in March (bloody ridiculous – footy starts at Easter for God fearing people).
Nice write up Sir Les. Peter B, I agree with pretty much all your thoughts, surely Uzzie and Manus are a big worry whilst Hazllewood and Marsh are too injury prone. I like the idea of Konstas included but dropping McSweeny dosen’t make much sense to me. None of the top 4 Australian batsmen can handle the hand grenades Bumrah sends down.