All eyes on Adelaide for pink ball Test

Steve Smith has identified Shaun Marsh’s return to his best batting position and his ability to start well when fresh as the keys to the enigmatic batsman cementing himself in the Test team.

 

Marsh will bat at No.5 in the historic day-night Test against New Zealand starting at Adelaide Oval today.

 

It will be the left-hander’s sixth stint in Test ranks during a 4½-year career that has involved just 15 matches.

 

But Smith believes that Marsh can do more than just replace the injured Usman Khawaja for the next Test or two.

 

“He’s done a terrific job at No.5 and I think that’s where he is best suited,” Smith said.

 

“Of course he can entrench himself.

 

“He’s got an opportunity to come in and do well and take the opportunity with both hands.”

 

Marsh batted at No.5 last summer when he scored 99 and 73 against India and appears best equipped to face the ball when it has lost some of its shine. He has also started well with a century on debut against Sri Lanka in 2011 and his highest score of 148 in his comeback innings against South Africa in 2014 after a two-year absence.

 

Marsh will be the only enforced change to the Australian top order while veteran Peter Siddle appears certain to replace the retired Mitchell Johnson in the pace attack.

 

Smith said the decision on whether quick Josh Hazlewood retained his spot or was replaced by James Pattinson would be made today when selection chairman Rod Marsh and coach Darren Lehmann made a final inspection of the unusually vivid green pitch.

 

Spinner Stephen O’Keefe was cut from the squad yesterday after it became apparent that seam would prove more dangerous than spin under lights.

 

But New Zealand appear poised to add Mitchell Santner to their attack in place of quick Matt Henry despite the left-arm orthodox spinner bowling with little control in the warm-up game at the WACA Ground at the weekend.

 

“There is probably a little bit more grass than I anticipated to be on it and that added bit of grass probably swayed our decision,” Smith said. “We’re going to go in with three quicks and an all-rounder.”

 

Smith and Lehmann have made repeated references to Hazlewood’s high workload in the first two Tests though the captain was bullish yesterday about his NSW teammate’s pros-pects of completing the series.

 

“He’s bowled beautifully in the past couple of days in the nets,” Smith said.

 

“It’s nice to have some fresh bowlers in, with obviously Peter Siddle and James Pattinson who haven’t played as much cricket as Josh has lately.

 

“It’s nice to have a few fresh faces in and ready to go but ... we’re still deciding on the bowlers.”

 

More than 40,000 spectators are expected on each of the first two days as the inaugural pink-ball match generates significant interest around the globe, though Smith said it would also be a particularly poignant game.

 

Today is the first anniversary of Test batsman Phillip Hughes’ death, and Smith said the players had also been moved by the deaths of two people in bushfires outside Adelaide this week.

 

Pink really is best

Research into developing the pink ball to first-class standard has been going on 10 years and, once it was determined pink was the best colour, there’s been seven years of testing and tinkering. No ball has been studied, tweaked and adapted more than the pink one. Other colours were tested, including orange - which produced a comet-like trail on television - and green, which apparently was a no-go for those with colour blindness. Testing in England included firing balls out of a cannon into a wall to test durability. Different cuts of leather were trialled, and colours of stitching, from black to green, to white and back to green. By coating the balls with a chemical, the colour could be enhanced. Kookaburra went through 16 shades of pink to get the most suitable tint. Compared with the red and white balls, “in terms of bounce, in terms of hardness, all of those characteristics and performances, there is no difference in the performance of the [pink] ball,” said Kookaburra managing director Brett Elliott.

 

The dummy’s guide to the pink ball test

 

Hard to pick the seam

Spinners like the pink ball because batsmen find it hard to pick up the seam. If they can’t spot the seam clearly, it makes working out the revolutions on the ball difficult, therefore harder to play. They also feel the pink ball is easier to grip.

 

Help under lights

Among the imponderables about how the inaugural day-night test will play out, there is common consensus on one thing: the pink ball offers more help to the fast-medium bowlers under lights than during the day. In New Zealand’s two-day match against a Western Australian XI in Perth last weekend, both seam attacks were certainly more potent at night.

 

Easy to spot

Television viewers won’t have any issues spotting the ball. At Adelaide Oval, there may be problems for the naked eye as the ball leaves the bowler’s hand and reaches the batsman, once it is about 30-40 overs old. New, it’s fine. Also the ball shows up well running over the green outfield.

 

Square errors

Watch for fielding errors square of the wicket. The anecdotal evidence suggests the pink ball is harder to pick up coming off the bat flat and hard rather than an edge off a bat to slip or in the air to the outfield.

 

Tough times

The early overs with the new ball are likely to be critical. Once the shine has gone from the ball, on a pitch long renowned as the best batting strip in the country and against quality batsmen, the bowlers could be in for a tough few hours - before the twilight settles in.

 

Tactics to play a part

Expect fireworks when the second new ball is taken at night. There’s even been suggestions Brendon McCullum and Steve Smith may employ tactical innovations to give their bowlers a chance to bowl in the final session - even if it means declaring early.

 

Ace hates pink

Australian speed spearhead Mitchell Starc hates the pink ball, yet he’s been highly successful with it in Sheffield Shield cricket. If it is closer to the white ball than the red, his record in the Australian domestic one-day competition this season was outstanding - six games, 26 wickets at 8.12 each. With 17 bowled, it suggests piercing accuracy and penetration; Australia’s pink ball ace, even if he’d rather be holding a red or white ball.

 

There’s the rub

The traditional method of retaining colour on a red ball, rubbing it on a trouser leg, won’t much help the pink ball keep its shine. It is harder to buff up. However, there’s a theory that seam bowlers can get assistance if they can get some heat into the ball. So expect to see plenty of vigorous rubbing - just for different reasons than the red ball.

 

Longer lasting

The red ball had to be changed constantly in both Brisbane and Perth. The initial indications are the pink balls last better. So many elements need to work in this test. Having far fewer trips to the middle for the fourth official with a box of replacement balls will be a good start.

 

-Agencies