Australia could pick as many as three spinners for the first Test against India in Nagpur, with the spotlight firmly on the host nation’s unusual pitch preparations.
Cricket journalist Bharat Sundaresan tweeted photos of groundstaff preparing the pitch for the match, which begins on Thursday.
It shows the areas outside the left-hander’s off stump being left to bake in the heat, while the rest of the pitch is watered.
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Australia could have as many as six left handers in the top eight, depending on selections.
“Interesting treatment of the pitch in Nagpur,” Sundaresan wrote.
“The groundstaff watered the entire centre of the surface & only the length areas outside the left-hander’s leg stump & then rolled only the centre, stopping short every time they got to the good length areas at both ends.”
The apparent effort to nullify Australia’s left handers could see right hander Peter Handscomb come into calculations, possibly at the expense of Matt Renshaw.
“Pretty dry, particularly one end,” Steve Smith said when asked about the pitch.
“I think it will take a bit of spin, particularly the left-arm spinner taking it into our left-handers. There’s a section there that’s quite dry.
“Other than that, I can’t really get a good gauge on it. I don’t think there will be a heap of bounce in the wicket, I think it will be quite skiddy for the seamers and maybe a bit of up-and-down movement as the game goes on.
“The cracks felt quite loose. I’m not entirely sure – we’ll wait and see.”
Cameron Green’s injury has complicated matters for Australia, who would be forced to play just one quick – Pat Cummins – if selectors opt for three spinners.
With Nathan Lyon a lock, fellow off-spinner Todd Murphy, leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson and left-armer Ashton Agar will vie for a spot in the starting side.
“I can’t see that they’ll pick Murphy, because they’ve got Lyon and they’ve got Travis Head, who is more than useful,” former Australian captain Mark Taylor told Wide World of Sports.
“You’ve got one-and-a-half off-spinners, you don’t need two-and-a-half, so I don’t think he’s going to play.”
Taylor also pointed out that if selectors only play two spinners, Agar was the likely choice ahead of Swepson, having been picked for the recent Sydney Test against South Africa.
“I assume that was a dress rehearsal for this series, Taylor said.
“It would be strange to have overlooked Swepson for Sydney and then pick him in India.”
“I wouldn’t be against picking Swepson, but they haven’t really instilled much confidence in him in recent months.”
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