Unseasonable rain in Perth could mean the pitch for the Border-Gavaskar series opener against India becomes easier to bat on the longer the Test goes on.
Persistent showers on Tuesday forced Australia to cancel their afternoon training session, but it also heavily impacted the preparations of ground staff at Optus Stadium.
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Despite having to adjust to the rainy conditions, WA Cricket head curator Isaac McDonald is comfortable with how the pitch would play.
Australia crushed Pakistan at Optus Stadium last September, skittling the tourists for 89 in their second innings as unpredictable bounce made batting a nightmare.
“I don’t think the weather will make this pitch fall apart,” McDonald said.
“There will be some deterioration, grass will stand up during the game and offer that variable bounce.
“In terms of those big snake WACA cracks, I don’t think the weather will get us there.
“There will be some really good pace and bounce in the pitch. It will just be how well they look after the ball; 8-10 mms of grass, sitting in that range.”
That grass estimation delighted star quick Josh Hazlewood, with Australia aiming to keep their perfect Test record at Optus Stadium intact.
Australia overcame India in the first Test at the ground when it opened back in 2018, beating New Zealand (2019), the West Indies (2022) and Pakistan (2023) since.
India’s solitary Test win in Perth came at the WACA Ground back in 2008.
“I love playing in Perth,” Hazlewood.
“The wicket is always a nice one to bowl pace, it’s bouncy and a few cracks, potentially,” Hazlewood said on Wednesday.
“I think the conditions suit us.
“We’re probably more used to it with that bounce and pace.”
Meantime at the other end of Australia’s order, Marnus Labuschagne is excited to have childhood mate Nathan McSweeney with him in the side.
After failing to convince a Brisbane school to recruit an 11-year-old McSweeney, Labuschagne now gets to call him an Australian teammate.
First meeting 14 years ago, the pair could be batting together at Optus Stadium as Australia attempt to reclaim the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
McSweeney will open the batting on debut as Australia’s 467th men’s Test cricketer, with his former Queensland teammate to follow at No.3.
Labuschagne is excited and thrilled for someone he has become strong friends with.
“I actually first met Nathan when he was 11,” Labuschagne recalled.
“He was doing trials at Brisbane State High, and I had just finished Year 12, and I was helping them select some young kids.
“I actually went out and said, ‘Mate, you need to get this guy’. And we didn’t.
“He ended up going to Nudgee College, so we’ve got a long history, and he’s a fantastic player.”
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Seeking more opportunities after managing just five Sheffield Shield matches for Queensland across three seasons, McSweeney moved to South Australia in 2021.
Ahead of this season, the 25-year-old was promoted to captain, thriving in leadership to produce career-best form.
“I’m getting goosebumps just thinking about his journey and how he’s got here,” Labuschagne said of McSweeney.
“It’s been really good to see him develop and grow his game, and our relationship’s always been close from the days where he was at Queensland, and even when he was younger.”
If Australia are able to win a series against India for the first time since 2014-15, they will need Labuschagne firing.
After making four centuries across five innings at the end of 2022, the 30-year-old has added just one more since — 111 in Manchester in July 2023.
In Australia’s previous Test back in March against New Zealand, Labuschagne hit a vital 90 in a sign he was recapturing his best.
Labuschagne will be hoping to keep his impeccable record at Optus Stadium intact, having scored three centuries at 103.80 across just three Tests at the ground.
