Why bowling first may be the way to go
ELECTING to bowl in Adelaide has emerged as a real tactic on a first Test strip rated the best in the nation by legends from Brett Lee to current stars.
Cricket Australia has worked with venue curators to ensure “different characteristics around the country should be celebrated”, despite the im- plementation of drop-ins in Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide. Perth’s new 60,000-seat stadium has pace like the WACA of old while Adelaide has something for everyone.
Respected Adelaide curator Damian Hough’s drop-in pitch will offer appreciable assistance for the speedsters on day one, while off-spinner Nathan Lyon will gain bounce and turn from the get-go. Batting will become easier as the match wears on.
Footmarks that Lyon exploited in Australia’s triumph on day five in 2014 against India will be a factor with Mitchell Starc fronting. However the pitch will not break up on the final day like Adelaide’s traditional strips did.
Hough has gone down a dif- ferent path since India’s last visit when the aim was to get the pitch to deteriorate like its traditional predecessor.
“If we can’t get it to deteriorate like the old pitches it was how do we get a good contest between bat and ball?” Hough said. “You still want spin in Adelaide, we can tick that box, it does spin but how can we assist the quicks and how do we get it to nibble and at some stage get some partnerships.”
Lee maintains Hough’s Adelaide pitch is the model for drop-ins around the world.
“You have to have something in there for the quicks,” Fox Sports commentator Lee said. “It has to be hard for batsmen and good for the bowlers but it will also be hard work after the new ball.”