India look to ride momentum
A Test series featuring moments of high drama on and off the field will lurch forward under the threat of COVID-19 on Thursday, with India's bowlers aiming to strike a decisive blow as Australia's misfiring batsmen attempt to regroup.
With a coronavirus outbreak still smouldering in Australia's largest city, the Sydney Cricket Ground will host a socially distanced crowd capped at 10,000 per day for what would usually be a packed New Year's test.
The series is level at 1-1, but India head into the third instalment with momentum after dampening Australia's Christmas cheer with a dominant eight-wicket win in Melbourne.
Victory would ensure India retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy contested between the nations, two years after their breakthrough 2-1 win in the 2018/19 series.
Not all is well with the India camp, though, and the strains of a long, "biosecure" tour have started to show. Five of India's players are under the microscope for allegedly breaching health protocols when out for a meal.
Media reports have said the tourists might boycott the fourth and final test in Brisbane if forced into more stringent quarantine. The team has declined to hose down the speculation, leaving the Australian cricket board to affirm India's support for the tour.
A rising injury count has also created headaches, forcing Ajinkya Rahane's side to tweak its pace attack for a third successive match.
Shardul Thakur is expected to replace Umesh Yadav but the uncapped left-armer T. Natarajan, called up after Umesh's calf strain, sent social media abuzz on Tuesday by tweeting a picture of himself in test whites.
Batsman Lokesh Rahul's wrist injury has also robbed India of a potential replacement for struggling opener Mayank Agarwal, though experienced batsman Rohit Sharma is available after recovering from a hamstring injury.
A 'warrior' that he is, David Warner has done everything to be ready and is likely to compete in the third Test against India, Australia head coach Justin Langer said on Tuesday and assured that lack of four-day cricket for the opener in the last few months is not a concern.
Langer also announced that young batsman Will Pucovski will make his Test debut on Thursday. Both Warner and Pucovski, who was primed for Test debut in Adelaide, missed the first two Tests of the series due to a groin injury and concussion-related issues respectively.
"Very hopeful that David will be ready to go (for the third Test), he is a bit of a warrior, isn't he? I have said this since day one that he is doing everything possible to be ready," Langer said at a virtual media conference.
"He is moving pretty well. He is very determined to play. He loves the competition and he loves playing Test cricket. We will get some final eyes on him at training this afternoon and we will make a discussion on that. But I would say, he (Warner) is looking very likely to play the Test match," he added.
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