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James Pattison Ruled Out Of Third Test

James Pattison ruled out of third Test

Australia fast bowler James Pattinson has been ruled out of the third Test against India due to bruised ribs. The match is scheduled to take place in Sydney between 7-11.

“Fast bowler James Pattinson has been ruled out of our Australian squad for the third #AUSvIND Vodafone Test with bruised ribs,” said Cricket Australia (CA).

CA hasn’t yet announced the replacement for the fast bowler. “He will not be replaced in the squad and will be assessed further ahead of the Brisbane Test match,” CA added.

He has taken 81 wickets in 21 outings for Australia at an average of 26.33 and last featured in a Test against New Zealand last January.

In other developments in the squads for the teams, David Warner, Sean Abbott and Will Pucovski have been included in the team for Australia with Joe Burns missing out his place.

On the other hand, injury concerns for India have continued with fast bowler Umesh Yadav too out of the series after sustaining calf injury. T.Natarajan who made his India debut in the limited-overs formats earlier on the tour has been included in the Test squad. Before him, Mohammed Shami was also ruled out of the series after fracturing his wrist.

The Test series between the two sides is levelled at 1-1 with two games to go. Australia defeated India in the first Test by 8 wickets while the visitors bounced back in the second clash. They won the match by 8 wickets riding on some fine batting from stand-in skipper Ajinkya Rahane and debutant Shubman Gill.

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India, Australia players, match staff test negative for Covid-19

In a big relief to both the BCCI and Cricket Australia and fans across the world, all the players on either side, along with match officials involved in the ongoing series between India and Australia have returned negative results after the latest round of Covid-19 testing. The negative results would give especially the Indian camp much-needed relief after five players—Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Prithvi Shaw, Rishabh Pant and Navdeep Saini allegedly breached the biosecure bubble protocols. The BCI had launched an investigation, and asked these five players to isolate away from the other team members, but allowed them to train for the third Test. Later on, they were added to the touring group, and they took a chartered flight to Sydney from Melbourne. There are few media reports claiming that the touring Indian side had raised objections about the prospect of a strict quarantine in Brisbane where the fourth and the final Test of the series is due to be played, but CA interim CEO Nick Hockley has on record said that the BCCI has not asked for any considerations about the isolation period in Brisbane. The third Test between Australia and India of the Border Gavaskar series is scheduled to take place at the SCG from January 07, followed by the fourth Test at the Gabba from January 15. The series is levelled at 1-1, with the hosts winning the first Test comprehensively while the India side bouncing back strongly in the second Test at the MCG.

Suck it up and get on with it: Nathaon Lyon on bubble complaints

Australian spinner Nathan Lyon has advised all the players and management staff who were bemoaning teh stricter quarantine rules in Brisbane to get on with it as a quarantine for a few days is far greater a sacrifice than toying with the rules. Underscoring the point that bubble life can be very demanding especially if you live in it for a long time, Lyon said, "I know there are a few people from both squads who have been in a bubble for close to six months now, but in my eyes, it's a very small sacrifice for us to get out there and play the game that we love and put a lot of smiles on a lot of people's faces around the world." Indirectly pointing at the Indian team’s restaurant controversy, where five players had to be isolated after being caught on camera eating out in a Melbourne restaurant, teh 33 years old said, "People make mistakes, we get that. But it's just making sure we go out there and worry about what's happening and try and prepare the best way we can for a Test match, and not look too much into anything else that the media's blowing up.” Saying that listening to medical advice is really important, Lyon reminded the press of how crucial the role of the healthcare personnel has been throughout the pandemic. “We've got to listen to the advice of our medical people, here at Cricket Australia we're lucky we've got an amazing medical team but let's just suck it up and get on with it and stop complaining," he said. Stuck at 394 wickets, just six away from the historic 400 landmark, Lyon knows teh importance of the Sydney Test at the SCG and hence impressed upon it, not forgetting in the way to mention that the fourth Test would eventually take place in Brisbane. "To be honest, I'm not really worried about what's being reported. We've heard nothing as players, so we travel up to Sydney today and hopefully get the result we're after and then straight on a plane up to Brissie and we'll play up there. We all know how much we love playing cricket at the Gabba and we know our record there as well, so all plans are to go to the Gabba," he said.

No boycott of Brisbane Test from the Indian side: CA clarifies

The Cricket Australia chief Nick Hockley has clarified that all the news about India boycotting Brisbane Test or refusing to go to the Gabba are unsubstantial as he has had no such information, either from teh BCCI or from the Indian team. “We speak to our counterparts at the BCCI daily and we haven’t had anything formal from them suggesting that they are not okay with the schedule,” Hockley told the media in Sydney on Monday, 4th January. Earlier it was the Australian media, which without naming any sources said that the Indian team was planning to boycott the Brisbane Test or forcing Cricket Australia to move the Test to Sydney under the influence of BCCI. Both the teams have already reached Sydney where at the SCG, the third Test of the match series, which is tied at 1-1 will be played under 25% crowd capacity. At a spin-friendly venue, the Indian team would be looking to make the most of it and get an unassailable lead in the tournament by winning the SCG Test before going to Brisbane, which is an Aussie fortress in terms of Tests.

SCG to have 25 percent crowd capacity

The crowd capacity at the Sydney Cricket Ground for the third Test between India and Australia has been reduced to 25 percent. The decision has come on New South Wales government’s advice. With the decrease in the capacity, around 9500 spectators will be allowed to watch the match. The sound though has a capacity of 38000. "Reducing the capacity of the venue is crucial in achieving social distancing requirements, and we sincerely thank ticket-holders for their patience, as we process refunds today, reconfigure the SCG seating plan to deliver these social distancing measures and go back on sale," Cricket Australia CEO Nick Hockley said in a statement. The SCG hosted the two ODIs and as many T20Is during the limited-overs clash between India and Australia. The first three games out of these were played in front of 18000 crowd while the last encounter saw more than 30000 people in attendance. With the new restrictions coming in, the match will also be have to re-ticketed. "In response to the public health situation in NSW, we are working closely with Venues NSW and NSW Health to put appropriate bio-security measures in place for our staff, players, match officials, broadcasters and fans to ensure we play the third Test at the SCG safely," Tony Shepherd, Venues NSW Chair, said that the SCG has taken significant measures to ensure safety of spectators.