22nd over: Australia 54-2 (Smith 24, Voges 9) The last over of the day, from Southee, passes peacefully for Australia. The last ball, to Voges, slips away for four byes. That’s it, then. The first trial of day-night Test cricket could hardly have gone better. The crowd was huge, the pitch and the pink ball behaved well – but not too well, which meant a fine contest between bat and ball: there were 256 runs and 12 wickets in the day. It’s too early to ostentatiously high-five one another in celebration of the salvation of Test cricket, but the early impressions are very good. “A tick and a smiley face from me,” says Shane Warne, who surely shouldn’t be on Tinder during his commentary stiny. Honk. Australia end the day on top, 148 runs behind with eight wickets remaining. Thanks for your emails; goodnight!
21th over: Australia 48-2 (Smith 24, Voges 7) The official crowd is 47,441, the most important of all the statistics that have been produced today. The most important statistic tomorrow might be Steve Smith’s score: he is playing beautifully and forces a low full toss from Boult through mid-off for four.. Boult is done for the day. He has been the pick of the New Zealand bowlers and has figures of 6-2-15-1.
20th over: Australia 44-2 (Smith 20, Voges 7) Southee is back into the attack as well, and starts with an errant delivery down the leg side to Smith. The next ball is pulled witheringly towards deep backward square, where Santner does really well to save three runs. Voges then plays around his front pad, prompting a biggish appeal for LBW. Southee was quite wide on the crease, so it was probably going down leg. If they had two reviews left they might have gone for it, but with only one remaining it would have been lunacy.
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19th over: Australia 43-2 (Smith 19, Voges 7) Boult comes on for Santner; he’ll have two overs at this end before the close. He gets immediate shape back into the right-handed Voges, who defends carefully. On Channel 9, Shane Warne is giving an acceptance speech on behalf of day-night Test cricket, thanking everyone who has been involved in the innovation. Boult switches around the wicket and gets one to hoop a long way back into Voges, who inside-edges an unconvincing defensive stroke.
18th over: Australia 44-2 (Smith 19, Voges 7) Smith pulls Bracewell for a single. He has played with unobtrusive authority and, though he only has 19, this has been a very good captain’s innings in the unusual circumstances. If he is there at the close, it would not be remotely surprising if he went on to make his 13th Test hundred.
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17th over: Australia 41-2 (Smith 18, Voges 6) Santner is still bowling, a really strange decision. McCullum is guilty of self-funkification here, because surely Southee and/or Boult are much more likely to take wickets. When Santner drops short, his first really bad ball, Voges pulls it easily for four.
“Hope you’re enjoying the game,” says Ian Stalvies. “Just wondering who should be nightwatchman if needed tonight - Nathan Lyon or Shaun Marsh?” Honk!
16th over: Australia 36-2 (Smith 17, Voges 2) Bracewell continues to hammer away at a good length. Voges is wishing his life away, batting exclusively with tomorrow morning in mind. He plays out a maiden with little difficulty. There are six overs remaining.
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15th over: Australia 36-2 (Smith 17, Voges 2) Santner continues, a poor move in my arrogant opinion. He has done nothing wrong, but he is being defended with ease and his third over passes without incident.
“For mine, the Pre-Dinner session should be the Dry Sherry & Cocktails session, and the Post-Dinner session should be Brandy & Cigars,” says Luke Williams. “The afternoon could be Chilled White & Cucumber Sandwiches. Or Brown Ale & Nik-Naks, depending on your preference.” Name your own session. What do you think this is, Marmite at Westfield?
14th over: Australia 35-2 (Smith 17, Voges 1) The new batsman is Adam Voges rather than Shaun Marsh, an interesting move. He gets off the mark with a Red Bull single to mid-on. This is excellent Test cricket, not least because nobody has a clue a) what to expect in the remaining 40 minutes and b) who is on top.
WICKET! Australia 34-2 (Burns b Bracewell 14)
New Zealand really needed that. Bracewell jagged one back to Burns, who pushed defensively and dragged it onto his stumps. It was well bowled, an excellent length, and Burns came at it almost with the curtain rail from outside the line.
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13th over: Australia 34-1 (Burns 14, Smith 17) It’s fair to say that today has been a triumph, though we shouldn’t get carried away: as with DRS and most other cricket innovations, there will surely be controversies and moral panics at some stage. Given all the hype and novelty, it’s easy to forget that this is a decisive match in a series that will probably end 2-0 or 1-1. The former looks much more likely at the moment, with Australia slow but authoritative progress. Saying which, Burns edges a quicker ball from Santner wide of slip for three. Time to go back to Southee or Boult at this end I’d say.
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12th over: Australia 29-1 (Burns 10, Smith 16) New Zealand have bowled pretty well, though perhaps they could have pitched it up a fraction more. They surely must take more wickets tonight if they are going to win this game. We should say that these two have batted with skill and commonsense. Smith in particular has been excellent.
Pink Ball..47,000 Fans.. Great TV viewing.. PERFECT CLIMATE(The Key).. Day/Night Tests Work.. #AUSvNZ
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) November 27, 2015
11th over: Australia 26-1 (Burns 9, Smith 15) A double bowling change from Brendon McCullum, with the left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner replacing Tim Southee. A lot of spinners have done well with the pink ball under lights, because the seam can be hard to pick up, so it’s certainly worth a look. His over is pretty harmless, with just one from it.
10th over: Australia 25-1 (Burns 9, Smith 14) Doug Bracewell replaces Trent Boult (4-1-11-1). He finds the necessary full length straight away, and Burns defends meticulously. Chappelli, just into the commentary box, reckons New Zealand need at least four wickets tonight. One could easily bring two, and not only because Shaun Marsh is the next man in. There are 12 overs remaining.
@robsmyth0 And that's it. Saffers all out. 9 year record gone. There's still one more Test, I think...
— Ravi Nair (@palfreyman1414) November 27, 2015
Perversely, their record might only be properly appreciated now that it’s gone. Nine years unbeaten in series aaway from home, in the modern climate, is outrageous.
9th over: Australia 25-1 (Burns 9, Smith 14) A miserable delivery from Southee, short and wide, is slaughtered through the covers for four by Smith. He is playing beautifully in difficult conditions, the sort of conditions that are supposed to be his Kryptonite. It’s a bit counter-intuitive in view of the prodigious swing, but I would tempted to have a look at one of the spinners here. Not for too long, maybe two overs at most if nothing is happening.
8th over: Australia 21-1 (Burns 9, Smith 10) What we can say, without fear of contradiction, is that this pink ball talks. It is swinging considerably under lights, though not every ball: when a delivery from Boult does not swing back, Smith is able to ping it through backward point for four. Smith has struck a good balance between respecting the bowling and conditions, and trying to impose himself on the game. Warner probably went too hard.
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7th over: Australia 13-1 (Burns 8, Smith 3) Burns is constructing his innings on a need-to-play basis, ignoring everything that is wide of the stumps. Smith is busier, attempting to dominate in his usual style by manoeuvring everything to leg. He is nonetheless beaten by a beautiful outswinger from Southee that kicks from a length. Southee passes Smith’s outside edge with the last delivery as well. This is all-new Test cricket, yet some things never change: batsmen have been hanging on against skilled new-ball bowlers in tricky conditions for 138 years. It’s compelling stuff.
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6th over: Australia 12-1 (Burns 7, Smith 3) That wasn’t great captaincy from McCullum. It looked like Boult suggested it might be too high – it was given not out, so umpire’s call was against them – but he went for the review anyway. That said, it was a good delivery, which came back a fair way. Burns missed the ball by a mile.
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REVIEW! Burns not out 7
Burns survives a huge shout for LBW from Boult. Was it too high? McCullum has gone for the review. It’s a poor review, in fact: it came back sharply but was bouncing comfortably over the top.
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5th over: Australia 10-1 (Burns 7, Smith 2) Smith digs out a swinging yorker from Southee. This is such a big session in the context of the series, never mind the future of Test cricket. New Zealand will probably want a minimum of three wickets before the close. All bets are off, really: Australia could easily be 70 for one or 50 for six. What we do know is that, as Mark Taylor says, batting will be far easier when the game resumes tomorrow afternoon.
@robsmyth0 Also worth noting that SA currently need 136 from their last 2 wickets to prevent their first overseas series loss in 9 years...
— Ravi Nair (@palfreyman1414) November 27, 2015
Indeed. It’s hard to know what to make of that series. I’m not sure we’ve LEARNED a single thing, never mind five things. It’s nice to see the return of the vile turner, mind.
4th over: Australia 8-1 (Burns 6, Smith 1) The new batsman is Steve Smith, who has moved up in the absence of Usman Khawaja. There are worse conditions in which to bowl to Steve Smith, that’s for sure.
@robsmyth0 I call this the Home Alone With Cheap Lager And The Simpsons And Regret session
— Dan Lucas (@DanLucas86) November 27, 2015
You know the rule of self-loathing bantz, it has to be accompanied by pictorial evidence. If I don’t see a picture of you with 12 cans of Hofmeister in the next 10 minutes, I’ll never trust another word that comes out of your fingers.
WICKET! Australia 6-1 (Warner c Southee b Boult 1)
Southee and Boult combine to take the huge wicket of David Warner. It was a fine delivery from Boult, full and curving away; Warner went for the drive and sliced it straight to Southee at third slip. You can understand why Warner wanted to dominate, but with hindsight he might feel he could have been a bit more judicious in that short innings.
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3rd over: Australia 6-0 (Burns 5, Warner 1) Southee has got the ball shaping nicely, though he is a bit too short at times in that over – especially with the last ball, which Burns cuts easily for four. You have to pitch it up here.
“I was just thinking about other examples of night-time Test cricket other than Karachi 2000, and im pretty sure the Auckland Test of New Zealand v England in 2002 was another,” says Phil Rhodes. “I was there and it was very dark and the floodlights were on. Mark Butcher was fielding in front of us and he was telling us he couldn’t see the ball at all. Neither could we but we were watching through the haze of extensive consumption of the local ale…” Yeah, I have a vague memory of the substitute Usman Afzaal standing around looking gormless as the ball went straight past him to the boundary.
2nd over: Australia 2-0 (Burns 1, Warner 1) Boult beats Warner with a couple of curving jaffas. This pink ball is doing plenty, though it’s not exactly without precedent for Southee and Boult to make a new ball talk, whatever its colour. A maiden.
“Bit harsh on poor old Trent there Rob,” says Mike German. “He’s got a 50 and an average of 16, which isn’t awful for a No. 11 - not in Chris Martin’s class at any rate.” Has he really? Crikey, that passed me by. Yes, my apologies, he’s nowhere near Morrison, never mind Martin.
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1st over: Australia 2-0 (Burns 1, Warner 1) There’s some early swing for Tim Southee; his first ball to David Warner comes back a fair way, with Warner inside-edging a drive onto his pads. The early impression is that Warner is not going to change his attacking approach one iota: he tries to force the last ball of the over through the off side and gets another thick inside edge.
“Dear Rob,” says Robert Wilson. “No one could be a more passionate, long-time, full-on fanboy of his, but I’m slightly worried that, in refusing to speak of Peter Siddle’s moustache, we’re all overstepping that very fine line between love and enabling.” What was it Edmund Burke said? All facial hair needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent?
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UPDATE: Mitchell Starc has gone for a scan on his ankle after leaving the field: https://t.co/8vabOaMUfB #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/MCeIFhKMTJ
— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) November 27, 2015
Amen to this (‘We’ is England, as you probably guessed)
@robsmyth0 Siddle is a classic third seamer isn't he? It's an undervalued role. We had two in 2005 and what a difference they made.
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) November 27, 2015
WICKET! New Zealand 202 all out (Southee c Warner b Hazlewood 16)
That’ll do. Southee clumps Hazlewood straight to mid-off, where Warner takes a comfortable catch and charges straight off the field to prepare for his innings. Forget all the distractions of the pink ball; that was a fine bowling performance from Australia.
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65th over: New Zealand 202-9 (Southee 16, Boult 2) Southee is swinging at everything, and rightly so because New Zealand want to be bowling in these conditions. He eventually manages to get a single, whereupon Boult makes room and slaps a couple over the covers. The torch of the inept New Zealand No11 has burned brightly from Danny Morrison to Chris Martin, and Boult is a worthy carrier.
64th over: New Zealand 199-9 (Southee 15, Boult 0) Southee is dropped by Voges. A bit of a shemozzle, this. Southee tried to pull Hazlewood into the crowd, only to slice it high over the slips. Voges ran backwards, steadied himself … and made a complete Horlicks of the chance. It wasn’t the easiest chance, in fairness, and it probably looked worse than it was. The next ball from Hazlewood is a snorter that pitches on off stump and straightens past the edge.
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63rd over: New Zealand 194-9 (Southee 10, Boult 0) Boult, an endearingly pathetic No11 batsman, is almost bowled round his legs by a full toss from Siddle. It was a deliberate plan, but Siddle speared it just wide of leg stump.
WICKET! New Zealand 194-9 (Bracewell c Burns b Siddle 11). SIDDLE'S 200th TEST WICKET
Peter Siddle becomes the 15th Australian to take 200 Test wickets. Bracewell clipped a fullish, straight delivery to short midwicket, where Burns took a smart catch above his head. What a lovely moment for Siddle. Funny how this game works: at times in the last year he must have wondered whether he would ever reach 200, yet now he will have an eye on 300.
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62nd over: New Zealand 194-8 (Bracewell 11, Southee 10) The new batsman is Tim Southee, one of Test cricket’s few death-hitters. After a couple of dot balls, he dispenses with conventional niceties: first he muscles a full ball from Hazlewood over midwicket for four, and then he pings the sweetest of pulls into the crowd.That’s the first pink six in Test cricket, and Southee has 10 from four balls.
WICKET! New Zealand 184-8 (Watling c Smith b Hazlewood 29)
Watling goes! Textbook stuff from Hazlewood, a length delivery that lifted just enough to take the edge as Watling leaned into an injudicious drive. Smith took a comfortable catch at second slip. That wasn’t quite there to drive.
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61st over: New Zealand 184-7 (Watling 29, Bracewell 11) It’s the usual accuracy-based torture from Siddle, with almost everything on a perfect length. Australia really did drop a considerable one by not playing him for all of the Ashes. Bracewell flicks impatiently and airily for a couple; that wasn’t far away from midwicket. Australia have a sub on for Mitchell Starc; apparently it’s the team masseur.
“This is going to be a very interesting session and I’m rather excited at the prospect,” says Phil Withall. “The movement of the ball, the way the pitch delivers, it’s all so new and intriguing. Shame I am sat in a room with my wife and daughters being subjected to ‘Dance Moms’, a programme that should be banned under some sort of international treaty. Not for the first time the OBO is my salvation.”
60th over: New Zealand 182-7 (Watling 29, Bracewell 9) This is the fourth over since dinner, and the ball hasn’t misbehaved much as yet. Hazlewood bowls a maiden to the admirably diligent Watling.
59th over: New Zealand 182-7 (Watling 29, Bracewell 9) Oof. Siddle thinks he has his 200th wicket when Bracewell gets stuck as he attempts to work to leg. The ball hits him on the pad in front of leg stump, prompting a huge LBW appeal. It’s given not out and, after a bit of a discussion, Australia decide not to review. I think that was Siddle’s decision. Either way, it was the right one: Hawkeye shows it was missing leg.
The pink ball looks bigger. Was ball size one of the things you could change on later versions of Sensible Soccer?
— King Cricket (@TheKingsTweets) November 27, 2015
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58th over: New Zealand 180-7 (Watling 28, Bracewell 8) It’s Josh Hazlewood from the other end, with three slips waiting. There’s a bit of wobble, and Bracewell thick edges for a couple. This is the thing: we will see everything that happens in the next two hours in the context of the pink ball. Any jaffas like Wasim Akram’s in the 1992 World Cup final will almost have an asterisk against them.
Here’s more from Max Opray at the ground:
If there is a specific target market for day-night Tests, Yagnesh
Nagarajan, 28, would be it. Originally from Chennai, India, Nagarajan has lived in Adelaide the past eight years, but doesn’t get to Test matches as often as he likes because of his work commitments as a researcher.
He said being able to come in on a twilight ticket is perfect and more day-night Tests would “definitely” see him come along more often. “I finished at five and work in the city, so I just came in, it’s a brilliant idea,” he said. “As long as the best teams play I’ll be here.”
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57th over: New Zealand 177-7 (Watling 28, Bracewell 5) Peter Siddle, on 199 Test wickets, is going to bowl the first over this final session. He almost strikes third ball: Watling, surprised by some tennis-ball bounce, edges over gully for four. Not sure the man at gully picked it up either.
New Zealand will resume on 173/7. I wonder if Brendon McCullum is considering the funkiest of declarations, given that batting should be at its most difficult in the next hour. There was a fantastic declaration in the Caribbean the other day, and of course we used to see some fantastic declarations in the days of sticky wickets.
Apologies in advance for the poverty of this coverage
I’m doing it, for one, but also I have a cold that even Marty McFly would call heavy. So if I miss a Steve Smith hat-trick because I’m in the middle of a sprawling tribute to the anaesthetic properties of Strepsils Extra Strength, I’m sorry.
What if, what if, what if?
Here’s our man Max Opray at the Adelaide Oval:
“Hopped into a jam-packed elevator in the southern stand just before, and found myself pressed face-to-face in uncomfortably intimate fashion with one Shane Warne. Despite the inappropriate context, I resolved to open my mouth to try and probe his mind about how the pink ball was holding up, but just as I opened my mouth someone made a fake farting noise at the back of the lift which distracted the great man’s attention. The moment had passed, if it was ever there in the first place.”
So anyway, where are you watching this historic session? It’s almost a pre-ordained JFK moment. I’ll never forget where I was. Never.
This is a terrific piece
How dangerous is our game? We look at the question a year since the death of Phillip Hughes https://t.co/AAiHL7IYsL pic.twitter.com/X2bAiLanJs
— The Cricket Monthly (@cricketmonthly) November 27, 2015
Lies, lies, liiiies
As my colleague Ali Martin has pointed out, this isn’t the first day-night Test at all.
Evening one, evening all
“What do you call this, eh?” Under normal circumstances, hearing such a phrase prompts a weary sigh, because you know it will almost certainly be followed by a severe examination of your intrinsic inadequacies as a human being. These aren’t normal circumstances, however, and it’s a legitimate question. What do you we call this session? The night-time session? The twilight session? The pink session?
We have grown up with morning, afternoon and evening sessions, certainties to file alongside death, taxes and Taylor Swift. Now we need a new description. Whatever it is, it should soon become an established part of the cricket lexicon.
The post-work-wine session starts in around 20 minutes, at 7pm local time. Not long now until we find out if the spook stories are true, and whether an alien with an inexplicably deep knowledge of Jethro Tull will emerge from a good length and whisk the batsman off into space.
Okay, I’ll just turn you over to Rob now
...but it’s safe to say that the second session was thoroughly dominated by the Aussies, who took 5-93 as New Zealand’s middle order crumbled. Thanks for all of your emails and please do drop Rob a line once he’s wheeling away.
Dinner is taken on day one at Adelaide
56th over: New Zealand 172-7 (Watling 22, Bracewell 1)
Captain Smudge continues with his leggies, the view perhaps being that it’s hard to pick up the seam in the twilight period. Smith’s over is a typical mixed bag but the Kiwi pair survive it and that is DINNER on day one of the third Test. I’ll be back with an update or two prior, but Rob Smyth – the OBO’s own Bradman – will be here to join you shortly.
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55th over: New Zealand 172-7 (Watling 22, Bracewell 1)
Not for the first time, I’ve got my sums wrong on the dinner break so we’re still going. Oh, and Daniel Drew is the sub fielder, for those like me who take an interest in such things. Jono Wells took a catch in Perth. Can Drew reel one in here? Again the excitement is palpable. 44,405 people are currently in the ground too, if you’re gagging for crowd stats. I really should be drip-feeding you these gems, shouldn’t I?
44,405 in the ground at present. There must be A LOT out the back of the Members as the top deck of the eastern stand is almost empty.
— Andrew Faulkner (@AndrewFaulkner9) November 27, 2015
54th over: New Zealand 167-7 (Watling 22, Bracewell 1)
Filth time! Steve Smith brings himself on to bowl some leggies and his first delivery is classic Smudger material; a rank long-hop that Watling almost falls over himself to batter through mid-wicket. Alas, there’s a man out there so he only gets one. And with that, the lights have come on for the first time in an official day-night Test. Grab your kids. Hold your partner close. Revel in the majesty of electricty. This is sport at the absolute cutting edge.
53rd over: New Zealand 164-7 (Watling 21, Bracewell 0)
Doug Bracewell is another guy who can hold a bat the right way, but I wouldn’t think he was expecting to be batting in the seconds session when his skipper won the toss today. Lyon’s causing him a few issues too, dipping it well and confusing the batsman as to the drop of the ball. That was a classic off-spinner’s over, that one. Lyon is a real gem for this side. He’s got 2-37 from 14 overs of excellent spin.
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WICKET! Craig b Lyon 11 (New Zealand 164-7)
The spinner gets the spinner! Mark Craig will be furious with himself for falling to a classic off-spinner’s dismissal but Lyon has beaten him neck and crop, dipping it in to leg in a fashion that made the Kiwi shuffle back but then gently spinning it past both his bat and left pad to take the top of off-stump. It really squared him up. Super bowling by Lyon right as the batting pair had a handy partnership going.
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52nd over: New Zealand 163-6 (Watling 20, Craig 11)
BJ Watling is getting a bit more adventurous now, rocking back to a short one from Marsh and really stretching to loft a flat-batted cut shot over cover but it’s not entirely convincing. He gets two runs off the toe but it could easily have gone to hand. Far better is an on-drive he plays out to cow corner for three. Marsh thinks he’s a hard-done-by here but he’s really not; there’s almost nothing that truly troubles the batsmen.
51st over: New Zealand 157-6 (Watling 15, Craig 11)
Nathan Lyon is back for another pre-dinner over and a single to Watling is the only major trading done. Max Opray is back with a brilliant update from some accidental spectators at the ground:
With Australia firmly on top, the crowd on the hill are growing ever more boisterous. At the back corner of the hill a German couple watch on in bemusement. Werner and Sabine Tapken, both 50 and from Oldenburg, claim not to understand a single rule of the game unfolding before them.
“We aren’t supposed to be here,” Werner said. The couple were only meant to be in Adelaide for a brief stopover, but they missed their connecting flight, and so had to find something to do today. They’ve come into the Adelaide Oval on a twilight ticket, and wouldn’t have been able to make a day game. “We wanted to have a look inside the stadium anyway,” he said uncertainly. “But of course it’s more interesting with all the people.”
50th over: New Zealand 157-6 (Watling 14, Craig 11)
Marsh is a little wayward here, bowling a huge wide that Nevill can’t real in so the Kiwis get through for a second run. We’re only ten minutes from the dinner break now, when Rob Smyth will slide into the chair and replace me, but there’s a real concern for Australia with the absence of Mitchell Starc, even if they’re well on top in other senses.
Meanwhile, it’s been an incredible effort in the Shield today by Darren Lehmann’s son Jake.
STUMPS | Stunning effort from Ferguson (176*) and Lehmann (179*), batting through the 2nd and 3rd sessions as we finish play on 3/441
— West End Redbacks (@WestEndRedbacks) November 27, 2015
Jake has surpassed dad, @darren_lehmann’s record stand of 277, scored with our own coach Jamie Siddons in 1993/94! (2/2)
— West End Redbacks (@WestEndRedbacks) November 27, 2015
49th over: New Zealand 154-6 (Watling 13, Craig 11)
Siddle’s back a little earlier than he probably expected and first up he kind of invites Craig to drive him down the ground for a boundary, a dose that is repeated from the fourth delivery as well. Too straight, too full. So Siddle goes wider and the left-hander drives him through cover for three more. Craig’s no rabbit. These are proper cricket shots. Siddle probably wants Starc back now.
Mitchell Starc leaves the field injured
48th over: New Zealand 143-6 (Watling 12, Craig 0)
Yeah...Starc’s trying to put up with the pain until the break but he really doesn’t look good at the moment. He’s pinching at the bridge of his nose, covering his face with his cap and bending down on his haunches as he comes to terms with the pain in that foot. Anyway, Mitch Marsh continues with a disciplined line outside off stump and skipper Smith motions to Peter Siddle to warm up and replace Starc. With the over done, Starc hobbles from the field in pain and a sub fieldsman comes on.
47th over: New Zealand 142-6 (Watling 12, Craig 0)
There’s an unfortunate rider to Starc’s three wickets today; his sore foot is giving him all sorts of trouble and he’s really limping as this over ends. Maybe that played a role in the quick spray he gave Santner. You’d hope so. It was an ordinary look otherwise.
Brilliant:
Mitch bowled Mitch. #doublemitch pic.twitter.com/otuVp1frip
— Dan Liebke (@LiebCricket) November 27, 2015
WICKET! Santner b Starc 31 (New Zealand 142-6)
Starc cleans up Santner! Well, I’d just set off writing a tribute to Mitchell Santner’s straight-driven four from the second ball of this Starc over but then the bowler finds his range with the next one and skittles the youngster. Welcome to Test cricket, kid. That was about as comprehensive as you get. May I proffer a theory: it probably wasn’t necessary for Starc to give the debutant a send-off there. He batted adventurously and not without pluck. Calm down Starcers.
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46th over: New Zealand 138-5 (Santner 27, Watling 12)
“We’ll try and find a photo of Geoff Marsh for you,” says Shane Warne, apparently unaware of the wonders of Google images. He’s referring to the likeness of the former Australian opener to his son Shaun, which is, it has to be said, not exactly an item of consideration for Ripley’s Believe it or Not.
Marsh’s other son Mitchell bowls a maiden here and while we’re sticking with oldies, I have to again register my severe discomfort with an advert being shown on Australian TV right now; Allan Border spruiking some foot-rubbing machine to improve the circulation of yer elderly types. AB, please don’t get old like this. You’re my second father. We need you to be strong and vital, not like Pele and his mood enhancers.
45th over: New Zealand 138-5 (Santner 27, Watling 12)
Ooh, that’s a tease for Hazlewood. He’s fast and full to Santner and the youngster almost incurs the wrath of the big quick when he lunges forward and edges a drive over gully to pick up four. Santner looks back at the bowler for a sledge but Halzewood bites his tongue, which in not being the expected course of events actually provides a quite compelling sight.
1979, when the cricket was wild and cartoonists were legally blind:
On this day in 1979 @CricketAus & the @WestIndies played out the first ODI at the SCG #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/FKb4ekjO1s
— Aust Cricketers Assn (@ACA_Players) November 27, 2015
44th over: New Zealand 133-5 (Santner 23, Watling 12)
Mitchell Marsh appears now for his first trundle of the day and if his mediums were any more military we’d be playing with a camouflage-print ball, not a pink one. He’s driven down the ground by Watling, who picks up three, but those are the only runs of an over that never reached any great heights.
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43rd over: New Zealand 130-5 (Santner 23, Watling 9)
You might think I’m talking nonsense with all this discussion of leaves and funky declarations, but if you’re not watching this on TV you should know that Shane Warne has turned his attention to pies and the consumption of them. I dunno about you, but I doubt his claims that he’s just down a couple of Four ‘n Twenty’s himself. That’s old Warnie. The only thing that New Warnie is downing at that rate comes from a NutriBullet.
I love Glenn Maxwell but this was admittedly quite amusing:
@rustyjacko Lambert's leave really might be worse than the worst I can remember. Maxwell's reaction better though. pic.twitter.com/KZhFBnuaXq
— Glenn Valencich (@glennvalencich) November 27, 2015
42nd over: New Zealand 129-5 (Santner 23, Watling 8)
Yuck. Nathan Lyon has full access to Mitchell Santner to start the over but commits the cardinal sin of the off-spinner, dragging one down short and wide, allowing the newbie to reverse onto the back foot and flog him to the boundary at deep cover with a forceful cut shot. Not once but twice Lyon transgresses so. He’ll want to forget that this over ever happened.
Kevin Wilson agrees with me, so I’m publishing his email. “I can’t believe people had written off Siddle or even worse that the Aussie selectors had,” he says. “Sure he doesn’t look glamorous and doesn’t rip teams apart but he does that Stuart Clark job perfectly. Every team needs a bowler like him.”
More specifically, this Australian team needs a bowler like him, I’m certain. He’s still got plenty of miles in the tank. He’s a workhorse, sure, but how many times has he directly or indirectly contributed to key wickets for Australia? I reckon Pattinson has to do something genuinely compelling to oust him at this point.
41st over: New Zealand 121-5 (Santner 15, Watling 8)
Hazlewood is doing his ‘put it on a 20 cent piece’ routine at the moment but the pitch map indicates he’s possibly placed his coin a little too short of a good length, so Watling is free to leave most of his offerings in this over. Getting back to leaves, is there a worse exhibition than this one? Not according to YouTube.
40th over: New Zealand 121-5 (Santner 15, Watling 8)
Watling starts the over by turning Lyon to leg for a single so the spinner gets five deliveries to work the youngster over. For now, he’s passing the test with flying colours. And so it begins...
@rustyjacko NZ to declare NSW style before dusk to get some quick wickets! #declarationspeculation
— Thilo Fobes (@ThiloFobes) November 27, 2015
39th over: New Zealand 120-5 (Santner 15, Watling 7)
Siddle’s put in a decent shift today so Smith gives him a rest – perhaps against the bowler’s wishes – and brings back Hazlewood. Does Santner look like a Test 6 right now? Not really, but there seems to be a fair bit to work with even if he’s a little jumpy here against Hazlewood. Santner’s leaving work is quite tidy too, now that I observe it closely.
Mitchell Santner. ND player, awkward yet seemingly effective middle-order bat, bowls left-arm spin with no great turn. Seems familiar.
— Sports Freak (@Sportsfreakconz) November 27, 2015
38th over: New Zealand 116-5 (Santner 11, Watling 7)
There’s lots of turn outside the off stump here for Lyon when left-handed Santner is on strike and though he resists slashing outside off stump, the Kiwi has a hairy moment when he advances down the track and doesn’t quite middle an attempt to loft down to the long-off rope. It only just clears Josh Hazlewood at mid-off.
37th over: New Zealand 112-5 (Santner 8, Watling 6)
Remember at the start of the Australian winter when people (I could name names but I’m bigger than that) were saying that even at 30 (now 31), Peter Siddle was done as a Test cricketer? Good times. He’s bowling like a dream today; perfect for both the conditions and the needs of his captain. This over is a reverse of his previous one to Santner with the over-pitched delivery coming at the end. Santner plants his foot and clocks it through mid-off for four more. He’s really applying himself here, the youngster.
36th over: New Zealand 108-5 (Santner 4, Watling 6)
Now Watling gets moving with a boundary, clumping Starc through backward point with a full-blooded stroke. All of these tumbling wickets have got me thinking though; would Australia really want to bat for the first time in this match at 9:30pm under lights?
The first 33 balls after “tea” went for 18 runs and produced 3 wickets. Three different bowlers too. #producingthegoods #AUSvNZ
— Isabelle Westbury (@izzywestbury) November 27, 2015
35th over: New Zealand 102-5 (Santner 4, Watling 0)
What a start for Santner! Siddle overpitches and the youngster leans forward well to clock a lovely drive out to the fence at deep extra cover. Hopefully that settles his nerves a little. He absolutely creamed it. But then...Siddle is not so charitable with the rest and balls are suddenly rearing past his outside edge, rising like Cobras and hissing their way through to Nevill. It’s safe to say that the boundary is the only score of the over. What an initiation for Santner.
34th over: New Zealand 98-5 (Santner 0, Watling 0)
Mitchell Santner must be bricking it here. He’s 23 years old, the all-rounder, but right now at the non-strikers end he looks about as convincing as a water-boy promoted to the 1st XI. Surely he’s only 15 or 16? Anyway, BJ Watling is out there with him now and manages to negotiate the last few balls of the Starc over without further calamity.
WICKET! McCullum c Nevill b Starc 4 (New Zealand 98-5)
McCullum goes! The Kiwis are coming apart at the seams! Oh dear. Mitchell Starc returns with the new boy Trantner at the non-strikers end and the first thing he sees is a wild and wooly swipe at a short one from his skipper, who sends a thick edge through to Nevill for his third catch in the space of ten minutes. This is chaos! The Aussies are running rampant. That was kamikaze cricket from McCullum. Sheesh.
WICKET! Taylor c Nevill b Siddle 21 (New Zealand 98-4)
Siddle gets his man and Taylor goes! That’s 199 wickets for the feisty Victorian when he draws Taylor forward but jags it back in off the deck to take an inside edge that Nevill again does very well to safely pouch. He richly deserves that wicket, Siddle. I’d just been tapping away at a full paragraph in tribute to his ceaseless pressure at one end as wickets fell at the other but now he gets one too. The New Zealanders are in all sorts now.
Updated
32nd over: New Zealand 95-3 (Taylor 21, McCullum 1)
New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum arrives at the crease now with his side in danger of squandering a decent start and gets off the mark himself by turning Lyon for a single to leg. The Aussies know he might give some chances here. Can they hold one?
WICKET! Latham c Nevill b Lyon 50 (New Zealand 94-3)
Lyon strikes! Oh dear, Tom Latham had been denied strike and momentum in the early stages of that session and he slashes at a shorter one from Lyon that’s spinning towards first slip and when it claims a very thick edge, Nevill adjusts his gloves the crucial distance to claim a truly superb catch behind the wicket. That’s a magnificent take. Having set himself up perfectly, Latham again departs prematurely. The Kiwis are in a bit of bother now.
Updated
31st over: New Zealand 94-2 (Latham 50, Taylor 21)
Before all the kerfuffle with the LBW appeal, Taylor had slashed Siddle through gully for four and he goes in that direction again for two more later in the over, then gets two with a splendid back foot drive through extra cover. There’s something happening every ball while Taylor’s on strike. He’s 21 now at a-run-a-ball.
Meanwhile, it’s fair to say that the Son of Boof is doing okay in the Sheffield Shield.
Back in the team with a bang! The moment @JLehmann71 secured his maiden first-class ton #SheffieldShield #TASvSA pic.twitter.com/W0Wp0vyy2V
— West End Redbacks (@WestEndRedbacks) November 27, 2015
NOT OUT! The Aussies burn a review
Umpire Ravi has nailed this one; it jagged back in and trapped Taylor in front but according to ball tracker it would have sailed over the top. Even with that verdict given, Siddle simply cannot believe it. He thinks he’s been robbed!
Review! Siddle thinks he's trapped Taylor in front
It jagged in and the Aussie simply cannot believe it wasn’t given. We shall soon see whether he’s right.
30th over: New Zealand 86-2 (Latham 50, Taylor 13)
Ross Taylor’s officially got a start now and drives Lyon attractively through mid-off to pick up a boundary before rotating the strike. As for the below entry, I’d sort of place Waugh in the Lara category but he did look great when he left off the front foot.
@rustyjacko best leaver? Mark Waugh. Didn't so much leave the ball as idly regard it with contempt as it sailed on by.
— 51allout (@51allout) November 27, 2015
29th over: New Zealand 81-2 (Latham 50, Taylor 8)
We’re back for the evening session and what the bloomin’ heck is Ross Taylor doing launching into an extravagant cover drive from Peter Siddle’s first ball? Sheesh, the Kiwi went perilously close to edging that through to Nevill behind the wicket and the next one jags back towards him as he hangs his bat out to dry. That’s certainly not making the aesthetically pleasing leaves list.
Eventually Taylor gets going by pulling a short one down to deep, backward square leg for one. Meanwhile, apparently James Pattinson will indeed face Western Australia in the upcoming Shield game. I’d been under the impression he’d miss it due to his involvement here. That all said, surely there was a more polite way of knocking back his services than having him wheel his kit bag around the boundary to leave as the match progresses, as happens just now. That’s the cricket version of packing your cardboard box and being ushered out of the office.
How is the pink ball holding up?
Reasonably well so far according to close-up vision on the TV, but then the pitch has a generous covering of grass so it’s perhaps better to hold off on judgement until the third or fourth day when it’s dried out and scuffed up.
Peter Mattessi is back. “My brother’s just got onto me saying he reckons Siddle deserves credit for his economy at one end leading to batsmen looking to score at the other and losing their wicket. Is there a stat for wickets taken in the over after a bowler’s? Something to measure (roughly) pressure created?” Hmm, I’m sure there is, I just don’t have it at hand. But Siddle most definately contributed to that wicket with his tight bowling, that’s for sure.
Meanwhile, Robert Wilson has a cracking entry for the ‘best leaves in cricket’ discussion. How is the way Walsh sort of holsters his bat after the first one here? Magnificent
A half-century for Tom Latham - and that is tea on day one
28th over: New Zealand 80-2 (Latham 50, Taylor 7)
As Nathan Lyon returns to the attack for the last over before our first major break of the day, Tom Latham finally progresses to the half-century mark. Good on him. It took 92 balls, 119 minutes and featured 7 boundaries and he richly deserved it for all his solid work in this series. Both sides make their way off the ground and on account of the removal of dangerous Kane Williamson, you’d have to call that Australia’s session. I’ll be back after I’ve crushed a Gatorade and some protein bars.
Updated
27th over: New Zealand 76-2 (Latham 46, Taylor 7)
Here’s a subtle joy of cricket for you: the sight of Tom Latham’s exaggerated leave when Josh Hazlewood gets one fizzing past his chest at 140 clicks plus. It’s not a Trescothick-standard leave, granted, but still an attractive one. Who are your favourite leavers? Brian Lara, when he bothered leaving, was a delight with all those swishy flourishes. Mike Hussey and Shaun Marsh too. I think it’s a left-hander thing. Anyway, Ross Taylor really gets moving in this over and none of his 7 runs are better than the square drive he sends flying to the boundary.
26th over: New Zealand 68-2 (Latham 45, Taylor 0)
This is determined stuff from Latham; the ball is zeroing in late towards his off stump when Starc comes over the wicket but he’s diligently keeping it out and then profits by cracking a low full toss out to the rope wide of long off to keep the scoreboard ticking.
Updated
25th over: New Zealand 64-2 (Latham 41, Taylor 0)
Ooof, Latham is living on the edge now when he cross-bats Hazlewood in the air through cover but his placement means it races away for a boundary rather than going to hand. That and a single are the only scores of the over. Here’s Williamson falling across to the off-side when he was trapped in front. Probably would have hurt, too.
Kane Williamson's average drops to a miserly 104.75 for the series #amateur #AUSvNZ https://t.co/VquFz4DCTx pic.twitter.com/ZmKnX3yTsy
— FOX SPORTS Cricket (@FOXCricketLive) November 27, 2015
24th over: New Zealand 59-2 (Latham 36, Taylor 0)
Starc is limping noticeably as the over comes to an end but it was an absolute gem of an effort to remove Williamson with that yorker and he’s got Ross Taylor under the pump early too. The official line on the breaks, by the way, is that we’ll have 20 minutes of “tea” soon and 40 minutes of “dinner” later. I’m amazed and not unhappy that neither of things have been given a naming rights sponsor.
Well what do you know, tie Williamson down and get him out #SiddleWasRight
— Daniel Brettig (@danbrettig) November 27, 2015
Despite this threat, New Zealand have only sent one batsman out to the crease to replace Kane. Disappointing #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/fmkYq7v9Nt
— Dan Liebke (@LiebCricket) November 27, 2015
Updated
WICKET! Williamson lbw Starc 22 (New Zealand 59-2)
Williamson is gone! And he’s not even arguing. That was a big yorker from Starc and the Kiwi ace played all around it, so it ended up jamming into his back foot in front of off stump. Starc’s hobbling a little from his exertions but that is a huuuuuge breakthrough for the Aussies. New Zealand’s best batsman is back in the sheds before lunch afternoon tea. Williamson was tied up without scoring for close to 20 minutes before that ball and Peter Siddle certainly played his role in that one.
Updated
23rd over: New Zealand 59-1 (Latham 36, Williamson 22)
Hazlewood is back for another burst and gives Latham a real gift with his first ball; a half-paced half-tracker that the lefty creams to the deep mid wicket boundary with an attractive pull shot. That’s the 50 partnership for the Kiwi pair but as I mentioned earlier, the Aussies will doubtless be reminding him that he’s had plenty of starts like this throughout the series and failed to kick on.
If anyone else at the ground has a Greg Matthews sighting to report, please let me know, especially if it’s as lame as this one.
Just saw Mo. He was in a hurry so we didn't chat.
— Anthony Leach (@ahleach) November 27, 2015
22nd over: New Zealand 55-1 (Latham 32, Williamson 22)
Mitchell Starc returns for another go and he’s hooping it in towards Williamson at an alarming rate early, rapping the Kiwi on the pads and launching into a throaty appeal for leg before. Umpire Illingworth thinks it’s tailing down leg and he’s absolutely right. Good thing that Steve Smith knocked back a review. That’s the issue with Starc coming around the wicket like this; it makes him a very slippery proposition to face but from such a wide position, also means he’s less likely to claim LBW dismissals. Regardless, it’s an impressive start to Starc’s second spell.
A big appeal from Starc and the Aussies, but it's given not out. Choose not to review #AUSvNZ #DayNightTest pic.twitter.com/znREohuREY
— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) November 27, 2015
21st over: New Zealand 55-1 (Latham 32, Williamson 22)
You sense this is a dangerous little patch for Latham; he’s always getting starts in this series but then conspiring to get himself out just as he looks set for a big one. He’s bogged down early in this Lyon over but when he gets another ropey one to finish the over, he makes the bowler pay by cracking the half-volley through cover for four.
Only 2 NZers have made 3 tons in the first 3 Tests of a series - RTaylor and AJones. Williamson could well join them in the gloaming tonight
— Ric Finlay (@RicFinlay) November 27, 2015
20th over: New Zealand 51-1 (Latham 28, Williamson 22)
Siddle is in his groove now and sends down another maiden to a patient and relaxed-looking Williamson. Max Opray has found some quotable Kiwi fans in the stands now, and an unkind Aussie too:
Spoke with a couple of dairy farmers who ventured across the Tasman from Hamilton, New Zealand. Mike Reed, 42, and Steven Leigh, 26, predicted the day night format would help boost their public profile. “As it is on later the timing is good for TV back home, so hopefully we get on the screen,” Reed said. “ We’re the only ones in the district who like cricket, they all think we’re a bit mad for coming over.” Reed noted it was also nice to be around for the first-ever international day-night Test., even if the pink ball ends up “bouncing like a beach ball”. “It’s like losing your virginity – it only happens once,” he said. An Australian dragging his knuckles past the conversation put forward some unkind theories regarding how exactly Kiwis lose their virginity back home.
Updated
19th over: New Zealand 51-1 (Latham 28, Williamson 22)
Williamson breaks the Lyon deadlock with a single but Latham misses a trick when he cuts a short and wide one straight to point from the final delivery when he might of, well, hammered it to the fence instead.
“If someone gets bowled by a jaffa in this Test match,” offers Raymond Reardon, “we may have to describe it as being bowled by a pink gum ball.” Raymond, that’s a real half-tracker buddy. I’m going to need you to lift in your next over. There’s plenty of others I’m prepared to give a bowl if this is your best effort.
18th over: New Zealand 50-1 (Latham 28, Williamson 21)
“Totally support Hugh Wilson’s recommendation of Joseph O’Neill’s book “Netherland” - cricket as a source of unity for exiles in New York, plus intrigue,” says Wendy Cowling. “O’Neill keeps an eye on Antipodean cricket; he admired Brett Lee as a bowler.” Much better than his music, I suppose.
As Peter Siddle produces another maiden, Robert Wilson is wondering what we were all so worried about. “Re pink-ball, day-night anxiety. Erm..so far, so fantastic. Old-school plus a crowd. What’s not to like?” Should we hold off until it gets dark though?
17th over: New Zealand 50-1 (Latham 28, Williamson 21)
Wowsers! Lyon almost claims Williamson here when he imparts a decent amount of overspin, drawing the batsman forward but getting the ball to dip so well that he almost receives a return catch. The bowler dived at full stretch but couldn’t quite get to it and it’s a lucky escape for Williamson The replay is a remarkable sight too; did anyone else watching notice the way the pink ball left a blurry trail in the vision? Is it like that watching it live? Makes it look like something you’d shoot at Luigi in Mario Kart. No?
16th over: New Zealand 50-1 (Latham 28, Williamson 21)
There’s some interesting field placements as Siddle charges in to Williamson; a silly mid-off, a short cover, short mid-wicket. Smith’s doing everything he can to put him off his game but Williamson just takes it in his stride, serenely absorbing the pressure and continuing as he did before. As Ian Chappell sagely notes, Williamson is the kind of player who dictates the tempo of the game and here he’s getting able support from Tom Latham, who crashes Siddle for a boundary out to deep cover with a lovely drive.
Max has another crowd update: “The ground is filling up fast, with the exception of the top deck of the Gavin Wanganeen/Jack Oatey/Max Basheer/Fos Williams/Mark Riccuito Stand, which currently features more names on the signage than people in the seats.” I now find myself pondering the worth of explaining those names to not only overseas readers, but ones with no great knowledge of regional Australian rules football history.
15th over: New Zealand 44-1 (Latham 23, Williamson 20)
As Nathan Lyon keeps wheeling away to Tom Latham after the break, our man on the ground, Max Opray, has a few takes from the punters at Adelaide Oval. Says Max:
Had a chat with Adelaide resident Wendy White, 67, as the queue was advancing forward at the Adelaide Oval’s South Gate. She doesn’t know about this pink ball business. “Why don’t they just make it luminous, so it shows up in the dark like road signs,” she suggested. Her new mate Barry Pearson, 55, jumped in, suggesting that didn’t go far enough. “They need a flickering ball, like a strobe light,” he said.
Calm down Bazza...
14th over: New Zealand 43-1 (Latham 22, Williamson 20)
Peter Siddle is back now to replace Josh Hazlewood and it’s the archetype Peter Siddle over this one; whole-hearted, nagging, stingy and laden with potential for banana references. The local broadcaster doesn’t manage any because they’re too busy lionising World Series Cricket. The future of Test cricket is here, people, and it looks a lot like the past. That’s drinks too.
13th over: New Zealand 43-1 (Latham 22, Williamson 20)
Lyon’s throwing it up a bit in this over and tempts Latham forward to turn one perilously close to the outstretched hand of Burns at short leg, but it’s safe and runs away for two. This is decent stuff from Lyon though; attacking spin bowling early in the day.
The least that can be said of this pink ball after an hour is that it's still the one they started with. #austvnz
— Greg Baum (@GregBaum) November 27, 2015
12th over: New Zealand 41-1 (Latham 20, Williamson 20)
The Kiwi pair seem reasonably happy to just see Hazlewood off but when he jags one into Williamson’s hip the batsman is happy enough to clip a single down to fine leg. “Can’t help but feel Warnie is going a bit off message, saying how normal everything feels,” says Will Macpherson via email. “He’s meant to say how different everything feels!”
11th over: New Zealand 39-1 (Latham 19, Williamson 19)
Phwoar, Steve Smith is going all out now, changing things up immediately on account of Siddle’s lack of penetration and bringing on Nathan Lyon, who is darting in around the wicket to Latham. Latham has a bit of a look then from the fourth ball of the over, skips down the track and lofts the off-spinner over the head of mid-on and out to the boundary. Super cricket from both sides, that; Smith making an attacking move and the Kiwi batsman heaping the pressure back on the bowler. This pink ball stuff ain’t half bad.
Speaking of cricket in America, here’s my l unchtime supper-time read sorted.
@rustyjacko on cricket in NYC, can recommend Joseph O'Neill's “Netherland” as reviewed by some news site below: https://t.co/igVzdQO9K9
— Hugh Wilson (@HWecon) November 27, 2015
10th over: New Zealand 35-1 (Latham 15, Williamson 19)
Kane Williamson is operating at genius level at the moment and as good as Hazlewood is bowling this morning, the Kiwi ace has no trouble at all turning him through mid-wicket for three. A few balls later there’s a huge LBW shout against Latham by Hazlewood but replays reveal that Umpire Illingworth was judicious in knocking it back, because though on line it was sailing well over the top of the timber. Latham celebrates his reprieve by cracking two down the ground.
I like this tweet, mainly because it reminds me of my favourite episode from season four of The Sopranos.
@rustyjacko Shane Warne, Cricketer Columbus
— Matt Hine (@MatthiasHine) November 27, 2015
9th over: New Zealand 29-1 (Latham 12, Williamson 16)
As Peter Siddle continues in more economical fashion this over, I find myself unusually drawn to the ramblings of Shane Warne, who is talking up his role as a cricketing missionary to the US. I wonder though...did anyone take him to Philadelphia or fill him in on its hundreds of years of cricket history? He seems to be under the impression that he was among the first human beings to have played cricket over in the States. Anyway, Siddle’s over to Latham is a maiden. It’s definitely not the first or last time that’ll happen.
8th over: New Zealand 29-1 (Latham 12, Williamson 16)
Given that Guptill’s wicket has been close to a gimme for the Australians in this series, it’s actually not the worst start by the Kiwis as both Williamson and Latham have settled in well against the pink ball and kept the runs ticking as Josh Hazlewood has hit his stride. Even Williamson’s edges seem deliberate at the moment; here he gets forward to the big paceman and because he plays with soft hands, keeps it along the carpet even when it flies wide of the slips.
7th over: New Zealand 21-1 (Latham 12, Williamson 8)
Two bodies, one mind. That’s Steve Smith and I this morning. Well, sort of. He does indeed give Mitchell Starc a rest but a blind man on a galloping horse would have noticed he was below his best in those first few overs. Peter Siddle appears for his first bowl of the day and he’s duly driven down the ground for three by Latham after he’d picked up two from the first ball. It’s not a hugely inspiring over from Siddle; low 130s, plenty to hit, plenty to leave, but he’ll settle into a rhythm soon enough, I’ve no doubt.
6th over: New Zealand 15-1 (Latham 7, Williamson 7)
If Starc is labouring a little, Hazlewood is bowling like an absolute dream so far, getting lateral movement and lift from the surface and always whanging it down into areas most conducive to taking wickets. Yiowww...Latham has a horror moment moving forward and glancing towards square leg when he almost pops a catch straight into the hands of Burns at short leg. Geez that was a close one. He survives it and the over with only the resultant single to show for his efforts.
Obligatory Travis Dean OBO update:
Trav Dean out for 6 this morning for the Bushrangers.. Was out to Moody who only kept his spot when NCN was suspended. #SheffieldShield
— Arj's Eye (@ArjGiese) November 27, 2015
5th over: New Zealand 14-1 (Latham 6, Williamson 7)
There’s a short leg in for both bowlers right at the moment, if you’re wondering, and Williamson confidently flicks Starc for two past that very man to start this over. There’s three slips and two gully fieldsmen in place for the Kiwi gun too but they’re just bystanders when Starc over-pitches on a leg stump line and allows Williamson to clip four just backward of square leg.
Starc’s speed is down a bit today and though he’s smiling between deliveries, he’s not quite nailing his line and length either. An early bowling change could be imminent.
Updated
4th over: New Zealand 8-1 (Latham 6, Williamson 1)
Ooh, maybe Guptill was within his rights to ask about a review, now that we see the replay. The contact was a little high on his back leg but the umpire stuck his finger straight up and the evidence to the contrary wasn’t strong enough. Williamson nudges to leg to get off the mark but Hazlewood is buoyant now and every ball seems to carry the possibility of a wicket.
Actually...maybe not as plumb as we thought! https://t.co/epZa7rFKIP #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/z14Qd54iLq
— FOX SPORTS Cricket (@FOXCricketLive) November 27, 2015
WICKET! Guptill lbw Hazlewood 1 (New Zealand 7-1)
Hazlewood strikes! Well, he was short of a length in his first over but he pitches this one up to Guptill, who presents a fair old gap between bat and pad, so with a bit of inward movement off the pitch he’s got no grounds for complaint when it belts into the pad traps him in front. He has a quick chat to Latham about a review but his partner gives him nothing. The Australians have their early breakthrough.
Updated
3rd over: New Zealand 7-0 (Guptill 1, Latham 6)
Starc gets his radar back early in this over, pinning Latham to the crease with a couple of in-duckers, the first of which almost traps the left-hander in front. Replays indicate that it would have speared past the leg stump, which gives you an idea of the ball’s trajectory from over the wicket. Latham picks up two but Starc’s moving it in both directions now and caution is required by the batsmen at the moment.
Warnie has electric blue suit form, it appears. Off-the-rack areas from Shano? Those trousers certainly don’t look bespoke.
@rustyjacko close? pic.twitter.com/BTGteNkcjz
— Cam Manning (@cmrnmnning) November 27, 2015
2nd over: New Zealand 5-0 (Guptill 1, Latham 4)
Josh Hazlewood appears at the River End to pair with Starc and just whisper it, he was probably lucky not to be the subject of much selection speculation in the lead-up to this game, because he wasn’t super-impressive in Perth.
Here he’s cranking it up to 139km/h with his third delivery and it’s really humming past Latham’s shoulder and into Peter Nevill’s gloves, but Latham leans into a lovely cover drive to pick up three and worse for the Aussies, Nathan Lyon cannons into the advertising hoardings as he saves the boundary. Hazlewood is unperturbed, jagging one in appreciably to go past Guptill’s waist. It’s aa far better start for the big New South Welshman than Starc’s the over before.
1st over: New Zealand 2-0 (Guptill 1, Latham 1)
Mitchell Starc is the attack leader now for Australia and he’s got three slips, a gully and a short leg in place as he steams in to Guptill with a full, in-swinging delivery to get us going. Guptill gets a leading edge as he prods forward but it’s along thr ground to short cover, where David Warner is licking his lips and talking the bowling up.
Starc actually pulls up a little proppy after sliding at the crease bowling his third delivery but it looks as though he’s okay and Guptill duly pushes to point to pick up the first run of the game. It must be said, it’s really not swinging for Starc. My prediction earlier looks like rubbish. Mark Taylor thinks he’s bowling from the wrong end vis a vis the direction of the breeze and perhaps he’s right. Starc gives Latham an easy single to leg and never really nails his line in this first over. So far so good for the Kiwis. Pink ball shmink ball.
Warnie’s suit...
"Trying these things is important for Test cricket" - @ShaneWarne on the day-night Test #AUSvNZ #WWOS pic.twitter.com/OcT28b5BY1
— Wide World of Sports (@WWOS9) November 27, 2015
We’re only moments away from the first ball of the pink ball Test
...and Peter Mattessi has a suggestion. “Surely the first interval, as you say, is afternoon tea. But the evening break must surely be cocktails. Off for the cocktail interval or, being a bit liberal, the cocktail hour.”
Cricket definitely needs properly-acknowledged booze breaks Pete, you’re absolutely right. Anyway, Tom Latham and Marty Guptill are making their way out into the middle of a near-packed Adelaide Oval now, so let’s get down to some cricket.
The anthems
Steve Smith leads the Aussies out and by his side is Barry ‘Nugget’ Rees, the Adelaide Oval property steward who serves as a kind of 13th man for the Australian side when they’re in the city of churches. So enthusiastic is his clapping in the player’s area that about 15 years ago senior players took the step of making him wear batting gloves to muffle the sound. Whaddaguy.
Robert McLiam Wilson wrote a magnificent piece for us last week and has also dropped by with name suggestions for the breaks; “Chow Time, Chill Time?” he asks. RMW, I’m afraid that this would inevitably lead to some kind of KFC cross-promotion, maniacally reeled off by Michael Slater as foam gathers in the corners of his mouth. Do we really want that? Is this the nation Australia has become? Actually, don’t answer that.
Sadly, Cricket Australia resisted the urge to bring in the hiccupping anthem boy, but Greta Bradman, Sir Donald’s grand-daughter, does the honours in fine style.
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Some wild predictions and a request for readers
Call me crazy, but with the pitch as green as it is right now, I think we might Peter Siddle pick up his 200th wicket by lunch (and is there anyone more deserving of reaching that milestone?) but...Mitchell Starc is the real danger man early.
I know, I know, I’m hardly going out on a limb with the latter theory but I really fancy his chances in this first session if he pitches it up and gets that lethal yorker screaming in to the right-handers. Lastly, can somebody please tweet me a photo of Shane Warne’s far-too-tight electric blue suit? How to describe it... Bryan Ferry becomes a Gold Coast real estate agent?
Australia once won a World Cup in the dark. Don’t understand what all this day/night Test fuss is about. #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/DhKp6mccYU
— Dan Liebke (@LiebCricket) November 27, 2015
Our first reader email
And Nicholas Darling has an understated suggestion for naming the breaks in play: “How about Tea and Coffee?” At the very least I think we’ll all need a bit of the latter today.
What does everyone think about the team line-ups? Funky of New Zealand to play two spinners when Australia sent let Steve O’Keefe skip the last few classes and go home early. And poor old James Pattinson – not only does he miss this game but also Victoria’s Shield fixture too. Who’d be a fast bowler?
@rustyjacko Sorry for Pattinson. But I'm all-Siddle all the time. Most chronically underpicked player of recent years. A total mensch.
— Robert McL Wilson (@Parisbob2001) November 27, 2015
Brendon McCullum wins the toss and New Zealand will bat!
Finally luck goes Brendon McCullum’s way after a wretched run with the toss and he elects to bat first. Spinner Mitchell Santner will play for the Kiwis in place of seamer Matt Henry and their skipper is palpably relieved at being able to bat first.
After he’s done, Steve Smith steps forward and says he’s excited to be making history today. You sense he would have liked a bat though. He and his teammates will wear black armbands today in honour of Phillip Hughes, the cherished teammate who passed away a year ago today.
Australia: Joe Burns, David Warner, Shaun Marsh, Steve Smith, Adam Voges, Mitchell Marsh, Peter Nevill, Peter Siddle, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.
New Zealand: Tom Latham, Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum, Mitchell Santner, BJ Watling, Doug Bracewell, Mark Craig, Tim Southee, Trent Boult.
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Some brief team news - Peter Siddle will play
...which of course means that James Pattinson is the man who misses out, still perhaps a concern to the selectors because he hasn’t got a lot of cricket under his belt this season. Siddle has been rewarded for his consistency when he has been given opportunities, you’d think, rather than any outstanding wicket-taking deeds for Victoria in recent times.
That'd be Peter Siddle looking at his potential run-up from the Cathedral End #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/rhZ4oU1e2J
— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) November 27, 2015
Preamble
Hello OBOers and welcome to this momentous occasion for cricket: the first pink-ball, day-night Test! Here at OBO Towers we have been refining our night vision, studying up on pigment dying techniques and, well, watching and re-watching Lenny Pascoe’s massive wide from the first day-night one-dayer.
Russell Jackson here to guide you through the first few sessions of play, taking the shine off this new-fangled Kookaburra ball and softening it up for OBO Godfather Rob Smyth to come in later and tonk it about. Just on first point, how about we kick things off by debating exactly what it is that we now call the various breaks in play, now that lunch and tea are obsolete; afternoon tea and supper? Light dinner and dessert? Email me on russell.jackson@theguardian.com or tweet me @rustyjacko throughout the day and we’ll come to a firm conclusion by the time Rob arrives for the night session.
I’ll be back shortly with team news but it’s safe to say that punters are already streaming through the gates at the Adelaide Oval.
Off and racing!! Gates are open at #AdelaideOval for the first ever #DayNightTest #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/c4ZFQXZqAP
— SACA News (@SACAnews) November 27, 2015
Russ will be here shortly to update you on team news and take you through the early stages of the day’s play, but why not take a look at Alison Mitchell’s in-depth feature on the pink ball while you’re waiting? Elsewhere, Tim Wigmore wonders why more countries aren’t following Australia’s lead when it comes to helmet safety standards and Mike Selvey casts his learned eye over the pink ball developments too.
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